When Fantasy and Reality Collide
by CideanForever
Summary: A near-death experience is the beginning for Raven. In another world, she learns lessons that go unseen until the very end.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

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**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**One**

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Raven, age fifteen, currently hates her life. She has a dead-end job and she is stuck under a bridge that she plans to use to wait out the violent storm that is tearing across the land. The dark-haired female sits with her back against the concert and lets her head drop back against the rough surface. She regrets that she didn't listen to her mom. A mom that she cannot get a hold of because she is all the way across the world doing whatever the hell she does for work. If anything, Raven pins this on the blond woman with the unnaturally white teeth.

She snorts in anger and pulls the damp jacket closer to her. The wind is cold and it feels like the warmth is being sucked out of her body. She cannot even begin to image how much she would like to curl up under her electric blanket with a cup of hot chocolate. She also wouldn't mind a good book on paranormal crime that has a mix of love to it. Those, to her, are the best books. No questions asked.

Whoever said to make lemonade out of the lemons life gives you truly is an idiot. No lemonade is coming out of this. The only thing she can think of that she will get is a cold and a massive headache.

She fishes out her cellphone and checks the time. She scowls when she sees that it is ten minutes after nine. She then dials a number and puts the phone to her ear.

_"Your weather report states it is twenty degrees. The weather warnings include serve thunderstorms, a flood, and tornadoes." _She rolls her eyes at the obvious statement that the recorded forecaster gives to her. She snaps shut the cell and returns it to her back pocket with a sigh.

She takes a glance at the downpour that ravages the land outside her makeshift shelter. The rain comes down from the sky like there's no tomorrow. She can't even make out the outline of the path that is a few feet out in the rain.

She frowns. She knows that going out there would be rough. Walking a few miles would be even harder. She mentally smacks herself and tells herself that she will take the car from now on. Even if the sky looks as friendly as it did today.

She pulls herself off her feet and makes her way out of the shelter into the rain. It slams down on her and she staggers from the force behind it. She shields her face and starts walking.

She inwardly signs as the rain starts to crash down on her with a lot more force than before. She yelps when a loud clap of thunder explodes above her and she shrieks as a bolt of lightning slams into the sidewalk a few feet in front of her.

She stumbles back several steps and lands on her rear. She eyes the charred ground and thanks whatever force that is watching out for her. That could have been her…

"Breath, Raven, breath…" she tells herself as she climbs to her feet and edges around the charred ground and onto the grass.

She climbs the hill and eyes the empty road. She shakes her head and takes off down the road. It is only a matter of time before she reaches her house.

That 'matter of time' is close to an hour and a half. She manages to force the key into the lock, get inside, and shut the door before another clap of thunder explodes in the night sky. She drops the heels by the door and wonders through the Japanese-styled house and hunts down the items she desires.

In ten minutes she has a bunch of candles, a few boxes of matches, all the food that can sour out of the fridge, a couple sets of blankets, a few towels, and her pajamas. She takes a candle, lights it, and hunts down the marble bathroom. She sets her load down and starts the shower.

She strips and steps into the cold water. She grabs the shampoo, which is on a shelf above the conditioner, and squeezes a small amount in her hand. She scrubs it into her hair and rinses. She repeats this with the conditioner. She grabs the bodywash and cleans herself up till she is sure she is clean as can be and turns off the water.

She steps out of the shower and dries off. She dresses into her button-down shirt and the black girl's boy boxers. She buttons the three middle buttons on the blouse and heads out of the bathroom.

She's the only one in the house and, therefore, she can dress as she pleases. She grabs the things in the front room and heads upstairs to her room. She eases into the room and pauses when a noise catches her attention.

She listens and she can hear something like footsteps upstairs. Footsteps in the attic. She glances up at the ceiling and then at the dark hall that has a left turn at the end. At the end is the curved staircase that leads to the old attic. An attic she hasn't been in since she was five.

She purses her lips and drops off everything in her room. She grabs the candle and goes back into the hall. She listens for a moment and the sound repeats itself. She feels a cold tingle up and down her spine.

She makes her way down the hall and turns left. She stares at the landing of the staircase that is about nine feet away. The dark, winding stairwell greets her soundlessly.

"Oh, stop being a baby." She tells herself as she closes the distance with a bit more confidence.

She grabs onto the railing and pulls herself onto the stairs. The light from the candle casts eerie shadows along the walls as she makes her way to the top floor. The entire way up goosebumps rise out of her skin and a knot forms in her stomach.

She finds another, square landing that once held a door. The open frame leads into a black abyss and Raven's heart starts to pound in her chest. She stops before the frame and listens.

Then she hears it. She can hear the footsteps and they come from the room beyond. She takes a tentative step forward and calls out, "Is somebody in here?"

The footsteps go silent and then she hears something like a ball bouncing across the floor. The hair on the back of Raven's next stands on end and she steps back.

A glint of light reflects off some type of surface within the room and Raven places a hand over her chest. She can feel the pounding of her heart but she swallows her fear. She takes a step forward as the light reappears and she slowly makes her way towards it.

A few minutes pass and she finds herself looking down on an old picture. She blows the dust off it and coughs. She pats her chest and eyes the picture.

It shows a woman, a man, and a small group of children. None of them look happy in the black and white picture. The building behind them is large and, as she leans in for a better look, she sees windows and bricks.

"So much for fear." She mutters to herself.

She picks up the photo and the book under it. She dusts off the cover and frowns. Not a book but a box of some sort. She opens it and eyes the rolled up scrolls setting inside it.

She places the lid back down and takes the picture, along with the boxed scrolls, downstairs. She laughs at herself but she pauses at the platform at the bottom of the steps. She can't get over the feeling that something is watching her.

So she turns. She looks up at the only visible part of the stairwell that can be seen before it curves around to end at the top. The only thing she sees is the old stairs.

She shakes her head and goes back to her room. She closes the door behind herself and crosses to her bed. She sets down and sets the two items in front of her. She scoots closer to her nightstand and sets the candle on it.

She sets the picture and box next to it. She flops down on her side and pulls out a scroll when her curiosity gets the best of her. She unrolls it and leans in.

The only thing she can make out is small letters, or symbols, and she groans.

"Great, it's in another language." She says to herself and rolls it back up.

However, a piece of paper falls down onto her bed and she eyes it. She places the scroll back in the box before turning to the paper. She picks it up and looks over it.

"When sun and moon meet, the portal opens between…" she reads aloud before shrugging.

She figures it must be with the scroll. She shakes her head and sets the paper in the box. It must be some type of story and that small piece of paper is a part of it. That's what she tells herself.

She rolls onto her side and closes her eyes. As she starts to drift to sleep she hears a crackling sound like the static of a television. The only problem is that there is no electricity.

She opens her eyes and sits up. She grabs the small watch she keeps next to the bed and squints to read it. It tells her that it's three in the morning.

"Great. Just freaking great. I'm pulled from my light slumber during the witching hours…" she groans as she swings her legs over the edge of her bed.

She jerks her feet back when the cold floor meets the warm bottoms of her feet. She pauses when she hears a crash downstairs and her eyes narrow. She soundlessly slips out of her bed and grabs the small handgun from the box under her bed.

_No damn burglar is stealing from my house…_she hisses to herself as she slips out of her room.

She is thankful that her mom had the hinges to the doors oiled. They open without a sound and, in cases like these, that is a very good thing. She makes her way through the hall and pauses in the middle of it when she hears another crash downstairs that is followed by swearing.

Her eyes narrow as she presses her back into the wall and crouches. She casts a glance at the hall behind her and sees nothing. She turns her attention back to the stairwell and grits her teeth in fear.

She takes a deep breath and creeps down the stairs. She can feel hints of numbness making its way into her body and she frowns. That, to her, is not a good thing.

She can hear voices now.

"They won't know what hit them. The old woman left for business and there is no way she'd leave her daughter behind." A voice speaks up and she crouches behind the couch. She's lucky no one saw her.

A second voice laughs and says, "I agree there, boss. Now, what are we after?"

She flips off the safety and takes a deep breath. They just might find her and she would rather have the gun ready then being open for a few seconds.

"Hey, did you two notice the heels by the door?" a third voice speaks up and Raven's heart leaps into her throat.

"Yeah, but it doesn't mean anything." The first speaker says.

"It says one thing. There is someone in this house." The third replies and the girl sends a prayer to the many kami that live in the world for protection.

"Yes, like the one hiding behind the couch." The second speaker calls out and Raven's eyes widen as the couch is thrown off to the side.

She jerks up to her feet and points the gun at the man in front of her. A few laughs are the answers to her action and she says, "Another step and I'll shoot."

"She thinks she's tough. If you haven't noticed, girl, I'm also armed." His words are followed by the blast of a gun and a searing pain makes itself known in her chest.

She hits the wall and the gun falls from her hand. She slides to the ground, eyes blur as they fill with tears, and a hand grabs her chin. She is forced to look up into cold eyes and then the speaker says with a gentle tenor, "You, girl, should have went with your mother."

Another pain makes itself known and she cries out. The man steps away and she falls onto her side as a dark liquid starts to pool around her. She lets the tears fall and she closes her eyes.

That static sound from earlier starts to increase in volume and she can hear something behind it. It sounds like water. It almost reminds her of a waterfall.

"What the hell is that!" the third speaker yells and she feels herself slipping.

_"Raven, come to us." _A soft voice purrs in her mind and she tries to shakes her head.

She feels heavy. It feels like someone is putting weight on her chest and it is getting increasingly hard to breath. She only knows that the voice is still calling her.

Her eyes open and she can make out a faint glow to the room. She can feel something curling around her dying limbs and she feels like she is sinking. Then she realizes that she is.

She would struggles but the fight seems too troublesome for her. She doesn't want to fight even as she sinks into the floor and into the darkness. She can see the floorboards above and the three men, all who she can see now, look frozen in time. Frozen and unable to move till they start to sink as well.

Then, as her eyes close, she gets a distant feeling that she is being tugged. It pulls her down at a faster rate and it feels like she is swirling in circles. She looses consciousness then but one last thought makes its way onto her mind before total blackness takes her.

_I don't want to die…_This is the first chapter to When Fantasy and Reality Collide. It is an odd beginning but all stories have to start somewhere. Anyway, I hope you all continue to read on.

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Not much happens in this chapter but it will get better. Anyway, please review.

CideanForever


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Two**

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The pain is what pulls her out of her dreams and her eyelids flutter open. The blurry outline of nature greets her and she blinks her eyes in confusion. She lays there and stares up at the starry sky as she tries to remember what happened. Tries to remember how she got here. Nothing comes up and, as she goes to sit up, she cries out in pain. She cries as this horrid feeling, this nauseating pain, spears through her and puts a halt to her thoughts. She cries out at the burning pain in her left hand.

She grips her abdomen and she can feel the damp cloth there. She pulls her hand away and gazes at the skin that has this deep, red liquid on it. Her eyes widen and her hand flies to her shoulder.

That's right. Someone broke into her house and one of them shot her. It also appears that she was stabbed, or slashed, before she lost consciousness. So is this place where they dropped her off at?

Did they dispose of her body in a grassy field under a clear night sky? Did they think she would bleed to death? She tries to move and a whimper escapes her lips.

She tries to get a better view of the place surrounding her but the black strands of her inky black hair obscures her sight. She hardly takes note of the pink highlights as she drops her head in the chilled grass. She just drops her head down and tires to push the pain to the back of her head.

She slowly shifts so that she is on her stomach and manages to get her hands under her weakened body. With a grunt, and a few whimpers, she pulls herself up to a sitting position. She knows that trying to stand now would be very unwise of her.

So, instead, she takes in her surroundings. It appears that she is in a forest of some kind and the trees tower high above her. The golden bark is a rather surprising sight and it almost looks to glow.

The leaves, along with the grass, are a dark shade of green and the long blades brush her elbows. It is a bit refreshing to be outside in weather this clear but she knows that she can't just sit here. The burglars who did this might be back any time now.

She groans as she lifts herself up to her feet and she stumbles as she weaves her way between the thick roots of trees. She keeps one hand around her waist just to be cautious of the gash there that is, thankfully, not bleeding at the moment. Even the bullet wound in her shoulder isn't bleeding.

She shifts and lifts up her arm. She eyes the top of her hand and the blackened burn mark on the top of her hand causes her to whimper. Where did that come from?

It looks like some type of tribal mark. It almost looks like a ragged, four-pointed star. The two, thin bands on her wrists also hurt and it kind of reminds her of the branding marks someone in Japan would get in the old days when they were sent to prison. She pushes that aside and decides that she would rather find a way out of her current place.

She stumbles along and she eyes the scenery around her. The birds in the trees are chirping in their sleep, the dens along the ground are filled with their furry critters, and the dew dripping off the leaves is a rather refreshing turn. At least the creeps from her hose didn't stay.

But she wishes it was the creeps because the scream that suddenly sounds spooks the birds into flight. She stiffens and then the scream is cut off. She doesn't hear a gun. She doesn't hear any yelling.

She edges along and comes across the area where the screaming took place. The sight causes her stomach to churn in disgust as she eyes the mutilated bodies and the blood covered ground. It is a thing she could have gone without seeing.

She pauses when she hears someone talking. She follows the sound and stops in the shadow of a tree. Standing in the moonlight is two people.

"Fuck, Kakuzu. Those bastards just popped the fuck out of nowhere!" the speaker comes from the smaller man and she notices that he is an albino. His pale skin and slicked back silver hair is a definite sign of that genetic fault.

"I saw myself." The second man, the taller one, replies and she cannot make out his features besides the fact that he is wearing a black cloak.

In fact, the albino is wearing a matching cloak from the looks of it. They both continue on talking as the pain in her hand starts to burn and she hisses in pain.

"Kakuzu." The first speaker says and then she hears something whistling through the air.

She screams as the tree she is hid partly behind is cut clean in half and she stumbles back. She stumbles back and lands, to her horror, on her rear. A flicker of movement and then both men are standing in front of her.

She looks up at them and she tries to scoot back but something keeps her in place. It curls around her legs and up onto her hips. She nearly cries when she sees looks down and sees these black threads weaving around her.

"Not fucking dressed for a damn walk, are you, girly?" the albino grins as he steps closer and she looks up at him in horror.

She's still wearing her pajamas. She whimpers as the threads proceed to go up and it slides up onto her waist under the white button-down shirt. She shifts and the threads tighten.

She can see the blood on this male. It drips from the silver hair. It stains his face, his hands, and the bare chest that is shown through the open V of the cloak. The amethyst eyes only show a deep content for this murder. He almost looks pleased with himself.

She watches as his arm moves and a large, three bladed scythe lands on his shoulder. A long cord wraps around his arm and the end dangles a few feet from the ground. Her eyes only widen when she notices something dark dripping off the glowing, blood red blades.

He watches her carefully before lifting the weapon off her shoulder. He places the last curved blade on the weapon under her chin and uses it to make her look up at him. He grins before saying, "I asked you a fucking question, bitch. I expect a damn answer."

Her lips quiver as she looks into his eyes. There is no mercy there and the only thing she can see is a promise for a painful death. It makes her eyes water as she realizes that she hasn't escaped death.

"N-No, I'm n-not, sir." She manages out in a hoarse whisper.

The man snorts as he applies pressure and he says, "Any fucking last words?"

Her eyes widen. Fear stills her heart.

_Oh God! He's going to kill me! _She whimpers as her eyes close.

The burning in her hand feels like an inferno and her eyes fly clench together in pain. She folds her arm over her waist and opens her eyes slightly to see the blade being swung back.

_But I don't want to die…_

She feels the fresh trail of tears running down her cheeks and she sees a flash of her mother in her mind's eye. She can see her worrying about her. Wondering what happened.

The blade cuts through the air and she hurls up her arms to defend her head in a weak form of defense. There is no way that it will stop the blades but she feels like she has to try...

The, like electric, a pulse runs through her body and she watches with wide eyes as the blade pauses in mid-motion. She tries to scoot back but the threads do not allow her to budge so she just stares at the male. She stares at the bloodied man who has been frozen in his place.

Her eyes are wide and she exhales in relief. She looks down at the black tendrils that are wound around her and she can feel a few just under her breast. Can feel the tips digging into her skin but they too are no longer moving.

She can see the open V of her blouse and the curve of her chest. No wonder the man was staring there. Why couldn't those jerks grab a bra before leaving and getting themselves killed?

She runs her fingers over the black threads and is surprised by the smooth surface. It's hard, like a metal, but it is also flexible. She finds that out as she slowly begins the process of unwrapping them from her torso and then her hips before moving them off her legs.

She slowly stands and looks at the two frozen figures. She isn't sure what happened. One moment he was about to cut her apart with the insanely large scythe and then he's frozen in place. It reminds her of _The Mask _in a way…but without the ice.

She stands up and edges away. When she is clear out of the blade's path it, to her upmost horror, restarts. It screams through the air and the albino stumbles forward. Shock is in his eyes and she can hear the other man, Kakuzu, swear.

"What the fuck?" the albino swears as he pulls the scythe back over his shoulders before swinging it up in the air in another attempt to cut her down.

She throws out her hand as it comes down and that pulse runs through her body for a second time in under five minutes. She watches as the man and blade are sent hurtling back. Her eyes widen and she looks down at her hand.

"W-What just happened?" she asks herself.

A blade presses to her throat as the man Kakuzu snarls, "That is what I want to know."

His arm is wrapped around her and the other holds the black to her throat. He's standing behind her but she can feel the heat of his body against her back.

"Just slit the bitch's fucking throat, you old bastard!" the swearing man yells.

"Hidan, shut up." Kakuzu snaps and she feels her eyes widen.

_Why do these names sound familiar? Where have I heard them from?_

She whimpers as the blades presses closer to her throat and she can see it in her mind. Can see the blade flying forward just as he, Kakuzu, is sent sprawling backwards.

Then it happens.

Raven's eyes widen as the blade rips out of Kakuzu's hand and hurtles across the field. He is then sent flying backwards by an unseen force and she can hear him grunt when he hits the ground. A following pained hiss tells her that he flipped and hit the ground again.

She just doesn't stand there this time. She runs. She runs like there is no tomorrow and she doesn't look back. She refuses to look back and hopes that both of them are not following. Hopefully they'll freeze again and give her a chance to escape.

The ground flies under her feet and she leaps over large roots. The pains she feels are forgotten as she flies. Slowing, or stopping, might end with her death.

And she doesn't want to die. She doesn't want anything but to be back home under her comforter and safe from the scythe wielding man who is yelling profanities somewhere behind her.

She is certain that he is chasing after her. She knows that he is stronger than her and that will mean that he will be able to cover more ground. She knows that he is fit. She saw a hint of the abs on his stomach due to the fact that his cloak was almost completely open in the front.

She also knows that even as he chases after her something is slowing him down. She keeps hearing him swear and hacking at the nature blocking his path.

She blames this on the Witching Hour. If she hadn't woken up at that damned time then she wouldn't be in this mess. She wouldn't be running from a psychotic albino who is wielding a scythe that is larger than she is.

She keeps running. She keeps hoping that the force holding him off will keep going. She wants to get away. She wants to find some place safe and a place that he can't find her at.

And she wants to know why he wants to kill her! She didn't do a damn thing to him and yet he wants to spray her blood everywhere with the large toy he is swinging around. But it isn't a toy. The line on her throat tells her that.

"Get the fuck back here, bitch!" she hears him roar and that is followed by a loud bang.

He swears a good deal more and yells something about roots being a 'fucking' problem nowadays. If she wasn't running for her life she might have found that to be a funny statement. Roots are a problem but she finds that jumping them is better than trying to run around them.

"Hey, bitch! Don't fucking ignore me!" she hears the foul mouthed man scream and then another thud echoes throughout the forest.

She gets an impression in her mind that he fell. That the roots reached up and tripped him. That they are winding themselves around him and penning him to the ground.

She hears more swearing and a lot of yelling. She can hear him yelling for Kakuzu and, at one point, he starts screaming at the tree. She almost trips when she hears the loud roar from him.

"Let me go you fucking tree! I will sacrifice you to Jashin-sama!" that is followed by a scream and then, "No! Stop that! Stop that, I demand you fucking tree! Kakuzu, damn it, help!"

His screams echo as she pulls farther and farther away. Soon the yelling vanishes and she finds a large tree with a burrow under its roots. She crawls into it and curls up in the center.

She doesn't even notice when the roots rise out of the ground and cover her.

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...Hidan is bested by a tree...how sad. I would laugh my ass off if I could see something like that. It makes you wonder what Hidan was yelling about when he told the tree to stop. LOL. Poor Raven. She came across them and they try to kill her. Please be gentle with this story. I'm a bit unsure about it.

Also - random Kidd, thank you for reading chapter one. I know the gun thing was over used but I don't think a bat would be much a threat against a gun. Anyway, thanks for reading. I also believe that I'm going to be busy with three stories going on at once. But I can manage two so I think I can handle three...I hope I can, at least. If not, it may take longer to update one of the stories.

CideanForever


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Three**

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The morning glow is the thing that wakes Raven. Tired and still in a great amount of pain, the raven-haired female sits up and winces. She glances down at herself and frowns. It's cold, which she knows for sure, but the chill is only starting to settle in on her. It is like she had some kind of blanket on her as she slept and then it vanished just as she started to wake up. It sounds crazy, she knows that, but that is how feels about it.

She groans as she stretches and winces as the wounds move with her movement. A bit of blood oozes out of the gash on her abdomen and the wound to her shoulder stings. She lets out a sigh as she stands and combs her multicolored hair with her hands. She lost the small band that was keeping her hair up.

She looks down at herself then and shakes her head. Her mother would be yelling at her if she could see her like this. If she could see her wearing nothing but a bloody pink button-down shirt, one that isn't even half buttoned up, and a pair of black boxer-underwear. Yeah, her mother would crap a golden brick and then start yelling.

She looks around the little burrow she woke in and shakes her head. She finds the entrance and pulls herself out on all fours. She just hopes the two psychos from last night aren't waiting for her.

Her hands grip the mossy ground outside the tree and she hauls herself out of the warm burrow. It is a good deal warmer than out here. The plants have little ice crystals hanging off them and her breath is seen as white clouds as it escapes her lips.

A part of her just tells her to climb back down into the earthen hole and wait till it warms up. She is a bit certain that the other night was a lot warmer. But that might only be due to the fact that she had a madman wielding a scythe attacking her. The other guy? He had a knife. The little threads, on the other hand, she's not sure where they came from.

She takes off through the woods. She limps as she walks, her leg a giant bruise, and she blames it on the two who attacked her. She blames it on the wielding a giant ass scythe that made her fall due to shock at the weapon he was wielding.

Yep. It's his fault.

Her brows furrow before she shakes her head again. No, it's the creeps' fault for breaking into her house at three in the freaking morning. It's their fault that she's where she is. Where she is, she does not know, but she's here. She's here and mentally cursing the day that her luck ran dry. It always seems that, to her anyway, that when something good happens then something bad happens right afterward. The bad is always two times 'better' than the good. Always.

"Great. I'm mentally ranting." She says to herself as she continues walking through the absurdly tall grass.

"And whoever owns this land needs a lawnmower. Grass shouldn't ever reach someone's hips. It's not right…" she continues and hisses as she stubs her toe on an unseen rock in the grass.

She swears as she continues and just lets her arms swing on either side of her. The wounds will bleed if they bleed. She is just glad that she can walk. And that she is still alive.

The forest, at this time, is starting to get a bit brighter. She can see the petals of the flowers opening and she is wondering how plants can survive in this chill. She eyes one of the ice crystals and watches as it drops off the flower.

Okay, it's not ice. It's just dew.

Raven pauses and closes her eyes. The wounds are getting to her head. The amount of blood that her body poured out the other day is making her a bit unsteady and maybe, just maybe, it is also the thing that is making her feel stupid for not telling the difference between dew and ice.

"Brilliant, just freaking brilliant..." She mutters and she stumbles. That causes another nasty swear to escape and she has a feeling that she just might take after her father more than she thought.

The next few minutes pass in silence until she hears someone call out, "Lady-san!"

She pauses and turns to see a small child racing towards her. She blinks and thinks the sight might be just an illusion but, to her relief, it isn't. The small child is in front of her and a rush of questions is spilling out of the young mouth.

Then she starts tugging her and saying that her mother is nearby. She continues to say that her mother will know what to do and that is when Raven speaks.

"Know what to do about what?"

The child looks at her like she grew a second head that has three eyes before replying, "You are covered in blood, Lady-san!"

She lets the child drag her through the grass and soon they are exiting the forest and heading down a really steep hill. Raven nearly falls but the child pushes on her legs. She keeps in mind that if she falls than the child holding onto her hand will be coming down with her. That, to her, would not be a good thing.

They reach the bottom and the child starts calling out for her father. Raven, for a moment, wonders what will happen. Then she freezes up when she realizes her state of dress.

She doesn't get a chance to say anything before a man literally appears in front of them. He's a tall guy with a close shaven beard but his eyes are hard. He meets her gaze eye to eye.

"Who are you?" he snaps and she answers him instantly by giving him her name.

"Raven-san, is it? Never mind that, I will – " he is cut off by a, "Yuna-Chan! Oh goodness! Come inside, dear."

The woman nearly picks her up off her feet as she shoos her into the house. She tells her daughter to go get the ointments and her son, who just came onto the scene, to add a bit more food to the table.

Raven finds herself in the bathroom and stripped. She cries out in alarm but the woman gets her into the bathtub and already is washing her hair. Raven has never felt this awkward in her entire life.

"Now, dear, how did you get these wounds?" the lady asks as she scrubs her back.

"I was attacked by a couple of psychos. One of them was trying to kill me with a giant scythe." She replies and the woman, Belle as she told her, replies, "I take it that they were ninja."

Raven frowns before saying, "Why would ninjas be wondering around in a forest? Or anywhere for a matter of fact…"

Belle laughs as she says, "Stop joking, Raven-san. Ninjas are everywhere. I take it you are a woman who likes to stay out of trouble."

"Yeah, if trouble intends to kill him, then I'd prefer staying at home or at school." She replies and the hand washing her back pauses.

"Did you fail a grade, Raven-san?" Belle asks and Raven looks at her over her shoulder.

"No, why?" she asks.

"You just look a bit old to be school." Raven just stares at her before saying, "I'm not sure what I should say to that."

Belle laughs and resumes her task of washing her. Raven assures her she can do it herself but she keeps insisting.

"These marks, they wind all the way around your body. How'd you get them?" she asks and Raven snorts as she answers, "The thread-thingies climbed me themselves."

"Thread-thingies?" she can hear the amusement in Belle's voice.

"Yeah, I'm not sure what they were. It happened last night and they came at me from behind. It was creepy how they would cling to me. Even creepier when one tried to press through my flesh." Raven laughs and then shudders as she rubs the spot that the tendrils broke. The one right under her left breast where her heart can be felt beating.

A couple minutes pass and Raven is wondering around in the bathroom with a towel on as Belle goes searching for something for her to wear. Apparently they don't have anything her size in the house but Raven can understand that.

The daughter, Yuna, is small while her mother is this large, boisterous woman. The father is taller than the wife and the son is a bit shorter than her. He is, however, a bit wider than her and that would mean any pants of his would fall off her.

Raven stops a moment and looks in the mirror that hangs over the sink. She looks clean despite the various bruises that dot her skin. Even the wound on her shoulder doesn't look to bad.

"Here we go." She looks over as Belle enters the room and sees that she has a long thing of cloth in her hands.

With Belle's help Raven is able to get in it and have it tied. It turns out to be an ice-blue kimono with a black obi. It has these small pink flowers along the rim of the sleeves and Raven can't help but laugh. It looks like her in silk. Black, pink and blue.

Belle also pulled her hair up into a bun and put chopsticks in it. She looks like a little Japanese girl ready to go to a festival of some sort. If she had been any other girl she would be brimming with tears of joy over the cuteness of the outfit.

Not Raven however. Nope. This girl has been labeled goth by her schoolmates and for a reason at that. She likes black. Black shinny jeans, a dark shirt (her button-down shirt is an exception since she wears it to bed…), _black_ eyeliner…

"Don't you like it?" Belle's voice reaches her and she turns to the woman with a wide smile on her face.

"I do. I just don't wear a lot of bright colored clothing." She answers and the woman nods to show that she understands.

She leads her out of the bathroom and into the front room. She looks around herself and notices with a small smile that this house has a homey feeling to it. The warm colors of the walls and the rich colored floor mats give it a feeling of security.

"Hello, Lady-san!" a small body crashes into her side and Raven grits her teeth in pain.

"Yuna, it is good to see that you're still hyper." Raven tries to give the child her sweetest smile but the fact that the kid just slammed into her side, the one that happens to hurt like hell on top of that, it kind of makes smiling a chore.

The little girl giggles and races through the house. That's when it clicks. The child doesn't look like her mom or her dad.

The mom and son are both black haired and green eyed. The father has brown hair and green eyes. The daughter has straw colored hair and blue eyes.

Belle, as if sensing this, says, "Yuna is a special child. She was sick when she was little and the village leader took her for a month. When he returned with her…that's how she looked."

A part of Raven wonders if the child was swapped but she does not voice that. That, if anything, might anger Belle. Yet, the mother must ask herself that same question.

They take a seat in the front room and the son runs in with a couple of plates. He hands one to her and then he gives the second to his mother. He then returns to the kitchen.

Not even ten minutes pass before the father enters the room. He looks at them both before saying in a calm tone, "I have contacted the medics. One will be here tomorrow."

He turns and leaves. Raven just stares at the spot he had been at moments before with a slight glare on her face before demanding, "What the _hell_ is his problem!"

Belle stifles a laugh as she answers, "He is not at ease with you here. We know nothing of you."

Raven turns to look at the woman and asks, "Does he think I might start blowing things up?"

Belle laughs outright before saying, "Something like that. The fact that you came out of the forest with such injuries…I think he just fears that whoever did that might come looking for you. You got away and they're alive…aren't they?"

Raven snorts as she answers, "Last I checked they were chasing me down and got…tangled…up."

The way that foul-mouthed cretin was shouting about the tree she wouldn't be surprised. She has never heard anyone swear like he did. And to think that, at first sight, she thought he was a good looking man.

She plucks a strawberry off the plate and pops it into her mouth as she imagines him falling face-first into the ground. A grin crosses her face as she adds the scythe's blades impaling his legs. That, she believes, is what that psycho deserves.

"So, Raven-san, where are you heading after this?" Belle asks and Raven turns her icy blue gaze on the woman and smiles.

"I'm not sure. I think I'm gonna look for a way home." She answers.

"Don't you know where it's at?" Belle looks alarmed and Raven shakes her head.

"Nope. Not anymore, I don't. I just know that it is far away from here. I just have to find a way to get there." Raven replies as she thinks back on the events that lead to this.

The only thing that comes up in her mind is that it was three o'clock in the morning when she heard that static sound. It was so creepy. She almost expected the girl from _The Ring_ to crawl into her room.

"Why don't you stay here for awhile? You can try to think of a way home and, at the same time, you can help me with the house." Belle offers and Raven cocks her head to the side.

_It's not like I have anywhere else to go, _she tells herself.

"I don't see what can go wrong with that. I'll help out around the house and, during that time, maybe something will jog my memory about my home." Raven grins.

This plan sounds ingenious to her. She's bound to remember something. She knows that a little time is what she needs.

So she leans back into the couch. She closes her eyes and goes back to that night and thinks. What had she done?

She lets the events from the bridge in the storm reply in her mind before she recalls coming home. It was cold in the house if she remembers correctly. No heat.

Her thoughts jump forward to after her shower when she thinks back on the creepy sounds coming from the attic. She had…went up there.

Her brow furrows as she tries to recall those few minutes. She remembers going up there and looking around. She remembers something, a picture maybe…

"Raven-san?" her eyes open and she turns to look at Belle.

The woman looks concerned and she gives a weak 'yes'.

"Raven-san, what's wrong?" Belle sets a hand on her shoulder and Raven shakes her head.

"It's nothing. Just a headache." She whispers but on the inside she is crying in panic.

"Raven-san, you look pale." Belle insists and Raven smiles.

She sits up, rests her elbows on her knees, and drops her head in her hands. She pulls her thoughts back to the attic. Tries to recall what she had found.

She remembers going into the attic, being a bit scared, and then…

Her brows furrow as she grits her teeth. Why is this so hard? That is what she asks herself.

She tries again. Tries to recall what she found.

She decides to skip it for a moment and goes to the moment in her room. She recalls having something with her and putting it in the room. She put it on the nightstand and sat in her bed.

Then…she was dozing off…

No. Something is missing before that. She was doing something before she dozed and before the static and the creeps.

Raven feels a cold dread in her chest. _Why can't I remember?_

* * *

Oh my...this doesn't seem good. What's happening to Raven? This is an odd chapter for me...due to the 'bathtime' thing. I'd be screaming profanities. One after the other.

Oh, yes, thank you Random Kidd, you are right. Raven's hair is how I once accidently descibed Gwyn's hair. I was thinking this up but I wasn't sure. I but in Raven's instead of Gwyn's. LOL - you have a good eye...memory...lol...you get what I mean.

Anyway, my readers, will you please review? I would love to know what you think about my story.

cretin: an offensive term that is used for somebody who is considered unintelligent.

CideanForever


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Four**

* * *

The days that followed the event when she realized that her memory is starting to slip away have been partly in panic and partly in work. Belle works hard and she also is the one who makes the bread for the small village that is about an hour off. They have horses and carts that they drive there when the father isn't close to deliver it himself. Raven has learned that making bread isn't as easy as some people say it is.

She also, after much pleading on her part, managed to get Belle to agree to allow her to wear pants and shirts. Belle makes them for her since she can measure her at the house and make the clothing due to their supply of cloth that is in the home.

She made her pants, all that are knee high, and most of them are black. She has one that is an earthy brown color. Her shirts are all loose, most come from the son, and are white and black. She thanked him for lending her his shirts and he just shrugged. She saw the blush on his cheeks as he turned but she didn't comment on it.

Yuna has a habit of questioning her on her views of everything. She even had the dad stop her once or twice to ask her a few questions. Belle has to shoo them away before they take it too far.

She even went to the village once and the way it was, it was a shock to her. It was like stepping into medieval Japan. Except there were people leaping across the rooftops and doing all kind of stunts that should kill a normal human being.

At this very moment she is working in the kitchen peeling potatoes. The door that leads to the backyard is open and she keeps glancing up. Every time she nods to herself and goes back to the peeler and vegetable. Each time she is sure that Yuna is fine.

The small girl has become her charge. She watches after her while the small girl's mom attends to things that she hasn't been able to in a long while. It also gives her some privacy with her husband.

Belle, currently, is working in the outside garden that is on the other side of the yard. If anything was to happen to Yuna then it would Raven to reach her first. That is another reason why she is watching her due to the child happens to be a bit clumsy.

She places the peeled potatoes in the basket next to her feet and dusts off her lap. She glances up again and sees Yuna chasing a butterfly. Another nod to herself as she stands and takes the potatoes to the sink to wash them.

She runs the water over them for a bit and keeps her eyes on the child the entire time. The laughing child just makes everyone happier. She's like a bubbly kitten – all snuggle and play.

She turns the water off and heads outside. The wounds still bother her a bit but the medic said he would be back today to take a look. He also looked rather unsettled as he looked over her wounds.

She drops the apron on the hook that is next to the door and takes a seat on the stairs. She watches as her charge runs around leaping. From the looks of it the girl is trying to catch the butterflies.

Raven smiles and shakes her head. Such innocence is a rarity in her world.

That's what she's figured. She is either dreaming or she, somehow, ended up in another world. One that has people who can do things that should be impossible like blowing actual fire out of their mouth, walking up trees, and leaping across rooftops that are more than seven feet apart. It is truly amazing to watch but it also makes her feel like an outsider in every sense of the word.

She doesn't have this power that everyone seems to have. She can't run at inhuman speeds, she can't jump great distances, and she most certainty can't use this 'chakra' that is in all people. From what she can say – she doesn't have any. That isn't a thought she will voice for a second time because, from what Belle told her, if you don't have chakra you die. So she just keeps that to herself and politely declines any partaking in chakra-related exercises.

A movement occurs in her peripheral vision and she turns her gaze to it. A frown mars her features when nothing is there and a scream causes her to focus on Yuna. To focus on the child and the man holding onto her and those who are around him. One is even picking a fight with Belle.

Raven jerks to her feet and strides across the field. Her eyes are narrowed and one of the guys look up at her with a grin.

"Looks like another female is joining the party, boss!" he calls out and many hoot in glee.

A sweet smile crosses her face as she envisions her fist breaking his nose. She can see it in her mind as he sprawls out on the ground with blood covering the lower half of his face. First, however, she has to see if they will leave. She sees no reason on getting violent if it is not necessary.

"Excuse me, boys, but you need to leave." She says the moment she is in their hearing range.

One guy steps forward and makes a grab for her. She just bats his hand away and glares. He meets her gaze with a grin.

"Now why should we do that, sweet-cakes?" their 'leader' says and she answers imminently.

"Because, you are not welcome here. Now leave."

The men all laugh and one grabs her forearm. She glares at the dark hand before twisting. He swings forward and she smashes her fist into his face.

And, just like she envisioned, he is sent sprawling on the ground with a broken nose that is gushing blood at the moment. In a few minutes the lower half of his face is covered in blood.

"You _are_ leaving." She steps forward and knocks down the next guy who jumps her.

"Damn bit – " the man is cut off when she slams the outside of her hand to his throat and he, in turn, starts to cough like mad.

"There is a child here, sir. I will not tolerate your foul words in front of her." She replies and plants her hands on her hips.

"Now leave." She barks and the guys eye her and the two she took down before looking back at her.

"I suggest you listen to the gal, boys." A deep voice snaps behind her and she turns to see Belle's husband and the medic.

The other males take off without a word. She goes over to Yuna and picks her off the ground as Belle is helped up by her husband.

"You okay, Yuna?" she asks the child who nods while saying, "You were so cool, Raven-san!"

Raven's cheeks redden as she stammers over her words as she thanks the child. Belle even pats her on the back but Belle's husband, who still hasn't said a word about his name, just observes her. She has a feeling that he is rethinking what he thought about her ealier.

"That was impressive for someone who is not a ninja." He finally says and her eyes narrow.

"Just because I'm not a ninja doesn't mean I can't beat someone senseless. I can handle myself if I have to." She retorts and the edges of his lips lift.

He doesn't say anything as he walks away. She sets Yuna on the ground and she jumps into her mom. The medic motions for her to take a seat once inside.

"Take the shirt off, Raven-san." He instructs and she listens.

It is awkward but she deals. She watches as he probes at the gash that runs along her waist and then pokes the one on her shoulder. He then looks over the near-healed bruises from the tendril-things.

That's when he pulls out the chakra and sends it into her. She watches as the green light runs over her skin and how the wounds lighten in color. She herself is already relaxing due to the sensation of the healing. It reminds her of a massage without the actual massaging.

"How do you feel?" the medic asks and she answers, "I'm still a bit tired. The wounds hurt a bit but I know that's normal."

He nods in agreement before asking, "Your chakra reserves are still undetectable, Raven-san. You need to save up or you'll get sick."

She just nods and says that she'll be careful. He told her that the last time as well. She plans on making sure that no one, and she means absolutely no one, knows that she doesn't have a drop of chakra in her body. That would end badly.

The medic moves to the bruises on her legs and heals them completely. He eyes her hand before asking, "And where did you say you got that wound?"

She looks at the black mark and replies, "I honestly don't know where it came from."

She knows what he's trying to do. She told him that she didn't know the first time and now he's trying to see if she does. It is rather obvious that he wants to know about it. Or that he knows something about it and is just playing dumb.

She pulls the shirt back on and rolls her shoulder. Not a pain makes itself known and she grins. That is something she could get use to. She likes how it feels when the chakra enters her system.

The medic stands and looks down at her with an odd, thoughtful expression in his eyes. She meets his gaze evenly and raises a brow in question.

"Are you heading towards the Land of Fire after this?" he asks suddenly and she shrugs.

"I don't know. I think I'll just go wherever my feet take me." She answers truthfully and the medic frowns at that.

"That is not wise. There are rogues on the road and many…unwanted…groups you don't want to run into." The man says and she shrugs.

"If it comes around then it will come. Can't do much about that." She replies as she stands.

The medic just tells her to take care and leaves. She casts a look over at Belle who is staring at her and she smiles. Belle returns the look but it doesn't reach her eyes.

"Hey, Belle, is there anything I can do?" she asks the woman and she shakes her head.

Raven holds but a sigh. During the middle of the day there is never anything for her to do. Even now, as she sits here with this family, she itches to get on the road. She desires to travel and see this world. She wants to see all the odd things in it.

She decides to head outside and takes her seat by on the stairs. She folds her arms over her knees and drops her chin on them. Her mind turns back to her first encounter here.

She had met that man, Hidan, and learned that he has a mouth of a sailor. He also looked more than willing to kill her. She does admit, just to herself, that his weapon was the coolest thing she has ever seen. A three bladed scythe is something you don't see.

Then there is that man Kakuzu but she couldn't make out much about him. All she was able to see was his eerie green eyes but the rest of him was obscured by his cloak and the odd thing he was wearing around his face. He also seemed more than willing to end her life when he pressed that blade to her throat.

And she got away. She had somehow escaped and in the most peculiar ways. Kakuzu, as he held onto her, was blasted backwards as his blade went sailing out away from her. Hidan was frozen for a few moments and then, from the sounds of it, held at bay by a tree.

Although she did not like the idea of dying – she is glad she ran into them. They gave her an idea what people might be like in this world. Violent and bloodthirsty.

Then there are people like Belle and Yuna. Gentle and helpful. Those are the types she likes but she isn't fond of the idea of being in one place for so long. She's starting to get stir-crazy.

She looks up at the sky and eyes the white clouds roaming about lazily. They have it easy. They go where they want and don't have to worry about a thing.

She, on the other hand, is land bound and having to look out for herself and others. She has to keep an eye on her health and make sure not to do anything drastic. The last thing she wants is to be in a hospital with a medic sewing up her wounds. That would be the last thing she wants.

She closes her eyes as she sighs. She begins to wonder why she is here. Why she is in this land and the reasons behind it are a mystery to her. A part of her wants to go home, to curl under her blankets and pretend this didn't happen, but the other part wants to explore. It wants to test what she is able to do. It wants to know if she changed in any way since she did get that weird mark on her hand.

"Raven-san?" she opens her eyes to gaze at Yuna and she answers, "Yes?"

Yuna climbs up onto her lap and asks, "What is your home like?"

Raven smiles as she answers, "Well, it's big. It has three floors but the rooms are small. I share it with my mother and any relatives that decide to pay us a visit. It's in a large town and all the people in it are different. Most of them don't have the same abilities."

Yuna suddenly interrupts to ask, "Is your village a ninja village?"

Raven laughs and sets a hand on the child's head. She leans in so that they are face-to-face and smiles.

"No, Yuna, my village is not a ninja village."

The child frowns but prompts her to say more. She talks a bit about the park, the schools, and the family. She doesn't mention anything that the child wouldn't know of to play it safe.

"Do you miss your home, Raven-san?" the child asks.

"Yes, Yuna. I miss my home. I miss it very much."

* * *

Okay, note to self - don't piss off Raven. She might break your nose. Not much happens in this chapter but it leaves some questions, doesn't it? I think it does. Anyway, this is Chapter Four of When Fantasy and Reality Collide and I hope you have enjoyed the story so far. Leave me a review.

CideanForever


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Five**

* * *

Morning arrives and Raven is awake just as the first lights of dawn wash over her face. Her eyes blink open and she slowly sits up. She yawns and brushes her bangs out of her face as she pulls herself off the couch. She eyes the small sack at her feet before smiling. Belle always has a way of getting things ready. That might be the one thing that Raven likes above all else.

She stands and fishes out a black pair of pants and a loose black shirt before slipping into the restroom. She brushes her hair and pulls it up into a bun before applying the liquid eyeliner that Belle bought had her husband buy her last night.

She slips out of the bathroom and into the kitchen to find the small bundle of food that the older woman left in the cooler for her. She takes that and goes back into the front room. She places the food inside the traveling bag that Belle gave her and pauses in thought.

She grabs the bag and clips it around her waist. She then grabs the cloak Belle made her and slips it around her shoulders before putting up the hood. The material, an inky black, feels like silk against her skin.

She slips out of the house and nearly screams when a hand lands on her shoulder. She turns to see Belle's husband staring down at her.

"You'll need these." He says as he hands her three bags.

She takes each and is surprised by the weight. He goes to explain, "One is money, that has kunais in it, and the last is medicine. It should help you on your journey."

She smiles up at him as she answers, "Thank you for this."

She unzips the top of her bag and slips the three bags in. She closes it and turns to thank him once more but it turns out that he is gone. She laughs to herself as she takes off down the steps and walks out into the misty morning.

She isn't sure as to where she is going but she knows that the answers to getting home will not come if she just stays at Belle's house. At their farm.

And she told Belle as much and the woman agreed. The two decided that she is well enough to travel and that it would be best not to tell the children. Yuna mainly, since the child would try to follow her.

So the two planned this. They got the bags, the clothes, and the food. Raven wasn't aware that Belle told the man she married.

It was nice that he got her the things her did. She inhales the cold air with that on her mind and smiles as the wind cools off her heated skin. She never thought that she would be wandering around a world filled with ninjas and magic.

It's absurd, really. If someone told her that someone would break into her house, shoot her and stab her, and that she would wake up in another world – she'd laughed in their face. It's that simple.

She stops a moment to adjust the phanny-like pack so that it isn't in front of her. Instead she moves it so that it rests behind her. She hardly thinks that someone will steal it.

The sun is partly way up when the town comes into sight and she frowns. She isn't as knowledgeable about this world and she would rather keep to herself. Yet she needs to get into the town and find out where to go.

She enters the empty streets of the village and continues on her way. The mist makes it almost impossible to see and she has to strain her eyes to get an idea as to where she is walking. She feels blind.

She pauses in the middle of the street when the sounds of chimes whisper in the wind. She worries her lower lip as it gets slowly gets louder.

She decides to keep walking. She can see two silhouettes in the distance that seem a bit distorted but she quickly realizes that it due to their cloaks. She can see the long length of it and the high collars as they get closer to each other.

She can start to make out the signs of bamboo hats on their heads and, after a moment, she sees that the chimes are attacked to their hats. A part of her finds that a bit girly as the other part starts to give off warning sirens in the back of her skull.

Then she sees why the warning bells started to go off.

On the back of one of the two is a large, three-bladed scythe. She also notes how the front of that cloak is open and the pale chest is visible. She imminently curses her luck.

She chooses to keep her head held high with the hood up and not even reach for it. She doesn't want any indicator that she has seen them before to show. She fears it might be a clear give-a-way.

In a matter of minutes they are only about ten feet away and she can see them both. She can see that it is the same two men she came across from her first day in this strange world.

The distance shortens to five feet and she lets her head lower slightly. Her shoulder brushes the scythe carrying maniac and she feels him stiffen on contact. She keeps walking but a hand land on her forearm.

She halts but does not turn. The grip tightens and she bites into her lower lip as she slowly turns to face the two. Every part of her screams in warning as she peers up through the black shadows of her hood to see that they are both watching her.

"Yes?" she lets her voice come out softer and she sees the smaller one look at his companion.

"Are you from around the damn place?" the one holding onto her arm asks and she shakes her head.

"I see." The taller one says and she stiffens as his hand reaches for her hood.

Her hand shoots up and her fingers curl around his wrist as the tips of his fingers brush the hood. She tightens her grip when he tries to move and she says, "I would appreciate it if you would keep your distance."

She pushes his hand away and steps back a bit. She can feel their gaze on her and the intensity of it scares her. She can also feel the tall one's displeasure.

"Remove your hood." He says and she replies, "You demand this of me yet you do not remove yours."

"We have our reasons." He remarks and she answers calmly, "As do I."

"Remove your fucking hood." The other bites out and she looks in his direction.

"And if I refuse?" her answer comes with the point of a blade to her throat.

Her eyes widen and then she bites out, "You will kill me?"

"Hai." Comes the answer and she sighs before saying, "Fine, just move that blade away from my throat."

The blade does not move and her eyes close in annoyance. He isn't going to make this easy on her, is he? So she grasps the edge of the hood and pushes it away.

"Fuck, it's that bitch from last week!" she heals the man hiss and the blade at her throat pushes forward.

She quickly leaps back and narrows her eyes at them as she snarls, "Why the _hell_ do you want to kill me! I didn't do a damn thing to you and you _attacked_ me! _And you're doing it again_!"

She screams in shock as the scythe passes inches in front of her face and she backs up. Her eyes narrow as she glances between the two. She isn't sure who she should keep her eyes on.

"You are a fucking ninja and – " the silver haired one snarls but she cuts him off with a, "No, I am _not_ a ninja! I am not!"

"You trapped me under a fucking tree!" he roars as he charges her and she dunks under the first attack and dives out of the way of the second.

She rolls along the ground and jumps to her feet as she yells, "I didn't trap you with anything! You got the wrong girl!"

He lunges forward for a second time and he slams his fist into her stomach. She cries out and her back hits a wall. He imminently pens her in place and she finds that she is more than uncomfortable with his knee pressed between her thighs. One of his hands has both of hers pens above her head.

The other hand has a sharp blade pointed at her throat and she holds still. She stares into his violet eyes and is memorized by the beauty of them. If it wasn't for his language she would say that he has a certain quality to him that she could call attractive. Okay – even with the bad mouth she can say that he is physically handsome.

"You blasted my fucking partner through five, full grown trees and sent his fucking knife through my leg, you bitch." He snaps and she protests again by frantically saying, "No I didn't!"

He puts pressure on the knife and she knows that it will break the skin any moment know. So she yells, "If I did that then why aren't I now!"

He pauses. She has her eyes closed, waiting for death, but she lets her eyes peel open as the albino says, "Good fucking point."

"I t-told you that you h-have the wrong g-girl." She stammers out and his eyes narrow.

"You have a damn twin?" He asks and she replies, "No."

"This is the same girl." The other says and the albino remarks, "How the fuck can you be sure?"

"She doesn't have a twin so who else could have attacked us?" and the albino answers, "It could have been a fucking transformation jutsu."

The two bicker on like that for a few minutes before the albino says, "There is only one fucking way to find out, Kakuzu."

"And what would that be, _Hidan_?" the man responds and the albino, or as he is named, Hidan replies with a smug look on his face, "She was injured when we came across her in the woods. She should still have a sign of those bruises."

Raven feels her face go pale when she realizes what that means. To start, he would have to have an idea where those wounds would be at. The only thing he knows is that the blood was on her chest. So that would mean he would have to…

"There is no way you are removing any article of my clothing." She snarls and she feels her lips come up in a visible display of anger.

"There's not a damn thing you can do to fucking stop me." Hidan remarks and her eyes narrow.

She curls her hands into fists and her jaw clenches. She would like nothing more than to see those two being blasted away from her. To see them collide with the wall on the far side of the wall.

She actually smiles when she starts to visual it in her mind. She can see them being thrown back like a mighty gust of wind explodes out of her and into them with enough force to break bones. She can hear the bricks in the buildings crack when they hit the wall.

Then, to her surprise, they both stumble back. Then their feet lift off the ground and they seem to flicker out of the sight before the building on the far side of the wall caves in under the impact. She stands there, wide-eyed, and watches as clouds of dust and brick roll out of the hole.

She yelps as black tendrils, the same ones that wrapped around her the first day she was here, comes hurtling out of the clouds. She dives to the side and watches as they slam into the wall she was standing against. She watches as the bricks cave in and small flacks of it fall off.

She then dodges another black tendril and takes off down the street. She can hear the small, thin threads hissing through the air and she cries out in alarm as she is jerked off her feet when one wraps around her ankle.

She struggles as it starts to wrap around her legs and rise up past her hips. She grits her teeth and pulls a blade out of her bag. She tries to cut through the threads but they turn out to be hard as iron.

She yelps when a blade, one that looks like the one she's hold, collides with hers and sends it flying out of her hands. She feels the tendrils moving up and around her wrists. Holding them still behind her back and she glares up at the cloaked man standing above her.

"Can't get away?" he asks with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

She feels her chest rising and lowering with every ragged breath she takes. She only snarls, "How the hell can I?"

"You managed to blast us through – " she cuts his off as she yells, "I didn't do that!"

Her head snaps to the side as he strikes her across the face and tears blur her sight. She takes a deep breath as she continues, "I didn't do it."

"Then who the fuck did?" she hears Hidan snarl and her gaze turns to the limping man.

She snaps, "I don't know!"

She sees his eyes narrow and her eyes close.

_I'm going to die…_ her thoughts are saddened by this as she thinks of her home. She can see her front room, the polished wooden floor, and she can smell the varnish on the wooded shelves. She can see her room again, the messy bed and the clothes piled in a basket next to the door, and it brings a sad smile to her lips.

She can feel a pulling sensation and she figures that the blade just cut into her. She lets her thoughts roam over her home and the vast backyard that it has. The swimming pool, the large porch, the small garden that her mom started…

The tug at her body increases and she smiles to herself.

She can see the large kitchen with the counter-top island in the center. She can see the counters lining the walls, the large fridge, and the various smells of cookies and cakes baking rise with the memory.

She can hear the distant exclamation of the albino…

Her thoughts drift to the other rooms in the house. Her mom's bedroom, the guest bedrooms, the den in the basement all come to mind along with the three various bathrooms in the house.

She lets her thoughts fall back to the night she went from her home to this world. She remembers being shot and that she hit the wall. Her blood will be on the wall unless the cops haven't found out about it yet.

"Fuck, what's happening, Kakuzu?" Hidan's voice is in a state of panic as she feels the tug one last time before all her senses blur.

She feels like someone threw her into a vortex, a black hole, and that she is being torn apart. It must be death. That is the only answer she can come up with.

Yet, as the sensation starts to dull, she can feel something hard behind her. Her breath is labored and she has the distant feeling that there others around her. Maybe other people who have recently died.

Her five senses start to click together and she cries out when her body screams in agony. She slumps to the side and she grasps her stomach. Her eyes open and she sees red around her.

She props one hand under her body and pushes herself to a sitting position and clenches her eyes shut as the pain rockets through her for a second time. She can hear that sound again…that static…

Her eyes snap open in excitement.

She's home! She just knows it! That's when she looks up and sees that she isn't alone.

"What the fuck, man?" a certain albino groans from his upside-down position on her couch.

"What the hell!" another voice booms in shock from somewhere in her house and she pulls herself up to her feet as she stares at the male on her couch.

"You got to be joking…" she says as the male falls off the couch.

She looks about the room, her front room, and notices that the floor has a large amount of blood on it and the wall behind her doesn't fare any differently. She eyes the man lying on the ground about seven feet from her and then realizes that he isn't the only one in the room.

She turns slowly to see the other guy, the one who has the creepy tendrils, passed out in the doorway that leads into the kitchen. She can make out another person in there and one at the top of the staircase. They, too, are unconscious.

"What the hell is going on here?" she asks herself as she stands there without a clue as to what she should do.

* * *

And she came across Hidan and Kakuzu a second time! _And _she got away with her life. Three cheers for her! But how will they react when they wake up? And who else crossed over into her world with her? So, how isi this going to turn out for her? Read and find out!

**To Random Kidd**: My favorite part writing the last chapter was when she beat the crap out of the guys. I'm glad I'm not the only one.

**To MegassaTheBomber**: Hello, new review who I have never typed to, I am glad that you like my story. I am also flattered that you think this has a professional 'feel' to it. I do try. I've been writing for a long time - most of it all my own creations but those I will not, most likely, share. No offense. My fanfictions are for all to read and I am happy that you are nice enough to drop me a review. It made my day knowing that I have one more person who is that nice. I suggest trying my other works. Valley of Ashes also is a more professional story of mine and Midnight Summer is just a goofy one that is fun as hell to write. All my main 'main' characters are OC - so yeah, look into those if you want.

**To Random Kidd (again)**: Sorry if my reply is short. Please keep reviewing. I love reading them and thank you for reviewing all my stories! *Cries in joy* Ah, sorry bout that, just getting a little overemotional.

To the two mentioned above and everyone else - thank you for reading chapter five.

Now, as I say in every chapter, R&R

CideanForever


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Six**

* * *

After ten minutes Raven concluded that she crossed back to her world with ten people in tow. She did not touch one of them but she went around counting them. To her luck they are all downstairs except for the one on the staircase. She rolled him down and tried her best to make sure he didn't bounce because, frankly, she doesn't want a blade in her back. So she headed upstairs afterward. Went up in hopes that when she comes down later that they will be gone and out of her front room. That's what any teen would want.

It didn't happen.

She went back downstairs about fifteen minutes later and they were still there. All still, thankfully, unconscious and not about to wake up any time soon. Or at least that is what she hopes.

It also turns out that she is wearing what she had on before crossing into their world. They are wearing what, as it comes to be, matching uniforms that equal a black cloak with red clouds outlined in white. They also wear those toe-less sandals and their bamboo hats are on them or, if they're lying down, beside them. She takes it that they might be some kind of ninja gang.

They started to wake up sooner than she thought they would. The first sound came from Hidan, who is only one of the two out of the ten whose name she knows, groaned. She had been heading back upstairs when she heard him.

She took off up those stairs like a rocket and goes right to her room. The scroll and picture are still sitting next to her bed on the nightstand and the clock reads half past three. That alone sends a feeling of dread through her.

She goes to the closet and grabs a clean pair of jogging pants. She slips into them and she pauses a second. They hang on her hips and her eyes widen. She's lost weight.

She slips into a clean bra and heads back downstairs. This time she brings a baseball bat instead of a gun. Guns didn't work on burglars so she knows that there is no chance in hell of them working on a ninja.

She creeps into the front room and sees that the albino has his back to her. She contemplates on slamming the metal bat against his head but she decides against it when she sees his partner stumbling into the room.

"The hell?" he mutters and leans into the wall when he loses his balance.

"Fuck, the hell is right. Where the fuck are we at?" Hidan replies as he sways in his place.

Raven stiffens when Kakuzu's gaze lands on her and he is silent for a moment before he says, "Why don't we ask her?"

Hidan slowly turns around and his eyes narrow the moment his gaze lands on her. She steps back and brings the bat in front of her as a possible shield as she snaps, "Stay away from me!"

He goes to charge her and his legs give out instantly. He crashes to the floor and he lets out a stream of curses as he pushes himself up onto his hands and knees. Raven, on the other hand, just stares at him in shock.

"What the fuck?" she hears the albino snarl in anger as his arms give out and she can hear the other male trying to suppress his laughter.

She edges around the downed male and goes the opposite way of Kakuzu. She takes the second door into the kitchen and sees that the three in there are also starting to stir from their sleep. She goes out the way she came in and looks over the large couch to where Kakuzu is standing.

She looks at the other couch and sees that Hidan is still on the ground next to it. She then eyes the dark-skinned man as he starts to move. He takes his steps small and slow – like an infant learning to walk for the first time.

She hears a shocked cry from the kitchen followed by a snort. Then there is a whimper of pain. She peers back into the kitchen to see that one of the men, one with blond hair, just feel down and is currently just lying there.

The other male, one with black hair and an orange mask, peers around a red-head and exclaims, "Sempai fell down!"

"Shut up, hmm." The blond on snaps and the masked ninja does an impression she would call pouting.

She pulls away from the kitchen and starts to relax as she realizes that none of them are able to function properly just yet. It took her nearly ten minutes to figure out how her legs work. She hopes that it is the same for them and harder.

She goes about and sees that each of them is now awake but each is in a rather foul mood. It seems like not being able to walk is something of a great offense. Then again, if she was a ninja and woke in a strange place and wasn't able to walk – well, she knows she would be pissed off.

She heads into the back rooms and looks into the bathroom where one man, one that is splint down the middle where one side is black and the other is white, just sits on the floor. He looks up at her for a moment before turning his attention back to whatever he was staring at. She decides she will just leave him be for the time being.

She heads into the back rooms where the last four are at. Three males and one female turn their attention to her. She just gives them a quick look-over before leaving the room.

She heads back into the front room and is shocked to see that Hidan and Kakuzu are sitting on the couch and the unnamed blond is sitting in the recliner that also sits within the large room. He seems rather content in his spot but she sure as hell doesn't want him there.

She gets a rather nasty picture in her mind of the blond, who is sitting in that chair, flying out of it and smashing face-first into the wall. She waits, hoping what she knows will happen doesn't happen, and winces when he does just that. The chair he is in seems to buck him out, he cries out in alarm, and then SPLAT…he meets the wall.

Hidan and Kakuzu both look at her before looking at Deidara and then turning their gaze back to her.

Then Hidan starts to laugh.

"Fuck, man, that's awesome!" he howls out in laughter and she shifts in her spot as she hears the blond groan, "Damn, that hurt…"

She turns to see him trying to stand up and, as he sways side-to-side, he turns his clear blue eyes on her with a frown on his face. He staggers in his spot before turning a nasty glare on Hidan as he asks in a rather cold voice, "What the hell are _you_ laughing at, hmmm?"

"Deidara, he is right. You were bested by a tree." Kakuzu puts in and the albino's face goes red.

He looks away, nose in the air, and crosses his arms over his chest. Deidara, to her amusement, starts to laugh. He dusts himself off before pausing in front of the recliner. He looks in her direction and their eyes meet.

"Can I sit here, hmm?" he asks and she knows, because she would feel the same, that he doesn't want another meeting with the wall.

She edges away from him but nods. She tightens her grip on her baseball bat and goes back into the kitchen. Both males in there are standing but they are also leaning on the counter for support.

They both look in her direction but neither say anything. She edges away like a timid mouse and nearly screams when her back collides with someone's chest.

She slowly turns and her head tips back a bit to see, to her horror, a sagging Hidan. His hand is pressed to wall and his other arm has found a way around her. His eyes are closed by he seems to be out of breath.

"Damn it…even the chakra is hard to fucking use…" he mutters to himself but she knows that he knows that she is there.

If he didn't she would label him the world's biggest idiot.

"Ah, excuse me, but could you let go?" she asks and yelps when the baseball bat is suddenly torn from her hands.

"Thanks, Sasori." The albino says and a grunt causes her to look over her shoulder.

Okay, so she's face to chest with a scythe-wielding maniac and has this emotionless guy with red hair behind her.

"Sasori-san!" the black-haired male leans on the red-head and she figures the voice came from him.

She stiffens when the red-headed man's hand falls on her shoulder and lets out an 'eep' when he shoves both her and Hidan backwards. The albino swears before asking, "What the hell, man?"

"Move." Comes the demand and Hidan stumbles back.

She feels the ground leave and she winces when he hits the ground. With her front pressed to him and the fact that he, to her dismay, turned them in midair so she lands on bottom she realizes how suggestive the position is.

"Get off." She demands as her face reddens.

"Fuck you." He snaps and her eyes narrow.

"Not if you were the last man on earth." She bites out and she hears Deidara's laughter.

Then she tries her theory for a second time. She pictures him in her mind's eye flying up and away.

She doesn't really care where he lands.

And he does what she hoped for. He flies off with a surprised cry and then she hears Deidara laughing even more when she hears him land. She just lies there, breathing hard and fast, smiling.

She might not be a ninja but she has her own magical powers. It's called Brain Power.

"Hidan, get off." She hears a male voice snap and she gets a feeling about why the blond is laughing.

She sits up and sees that everyone is slowly making their way into the front room. Spacious, wide, and now filled with uneasy ninjas…

Not a great combination.

"You okay, Itachi-san?" someone asks when she hears the albino ninja grunt.

"Ah." Is the near mute answer.

"So, now we all have a problem." Another voice speaks up.

"Hai." Another answers.

"Ask her, Leader…" Hidan's pained voice breaks through.

Raven is lifted off the ground and whirled around. She sees a certain other red-head coming towards her and his ringed eyes stare into her. She feels that he can into her soul.

"Who are you?" he asks and she answers, "Raven, sir."

He frowns before asking, "And where are we at?"

She wrings her hands before her as she bites down onto her lower lip.

"Ah, you see…umm…well, I don't know how to explain this…but you're in my house…" she answers in a fashion that is unlike her.

When has she been shy?

"And, pray tell, where is your house?" the man asks and she looks him in the eye as she answers, "It is in another world…I think…"

* * *

Sorry this took so long! I was busy and had a lot of other stuff to do! Anyway, this is this chapter. Also, for those who read all my stories, When The Sun Starts To Set has the first chapter up...anyway, tell me what you think about the story so far! I'll update when I can.

CideanForever


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Seven**

* * *

In about an hour she learned their names. Nothing else. Just the names of the ninja and then they all just stood there. She sat. Deidara kept eyeing her and she knows that he is wondering how he vaulted through the air earlier. Hidan and Kakuzu informed him that they have had similar experiences but they are not sure how she, a girl without chakra, can manage such high-level 'jutsus'. She has a sneaking suspicion that was an insult.

She also learned, from watching them, that each has a partner but one. The plant guy named Zetsu.

It also turns out that one team is made of three instead of two – Deidara, Sasori, and a childish man named Tobi.

The leader is Pein and his partner is a blue-haired woman who goes by Konan.

Itachi, who Hidan fell on, is partnered with the fish-man that is named Kisame.

She already knows that Hidan and Kakuzu are partnered together…so that covers it. Yep. Ten people, her house, and no parents.

Now, sitting across from the ten ninjas, she has their complete attention. She didn't ask for it but they are all watching her. She only knows that she doesn't like this attention.

Pein is the first to move and he crosses the room to stand in front of her. She already has a few images building in her brain and has them on hold in case she has to defend herself. It is good that they don't know how her 'Brain Power' works…or that would be really bad.

"If I understand this, you live here. In another world." Pein asks and she shrugs as she answers, "I guess that's the easiest way to put it."

Raven folds her hands across her chest before continuing, "For all I know, this is your doing."

She knows it isn't but she might as well blame it on them. It could pit them against each other and she could use the time to escape. Then she would call the police.

Then she would have to explain this so – that would be a bad idea.

"My doing? I would not risk Akatsuki's operations by having all of us in one location." He remarks and she cocks her head to the side with a look that can be described as childhood innocence.

"But would it matter if you were in a place where no one could find you?" she asks and he seems to hesitate before answering, "Anyplace can be found under the right means."

"Really. So, let's say, you were sent back to wherever you were then you could find your way back here." She asks with a large smile on her face.

"I assume so." He replies as he takes a seat on the edge of her coffee table that is right before her.

She looks upon all the ninjas that rest in her front room. The blood stains are still on the floor and that brings her thoughts upon one thing. She crossed into their world with a few others. She came back but they didn't appear.

They died.

Maybe that is why they didn't come through. They died and there was no reason to come back across. It is a thing she is thankful for because she is sure she wouldn't be able to handle a rotting corpse.

"You could find your way here even if it is in another world?" she asks and he pauses before answering, "I would form a jutsu suited for the purpose of coming over."

She sighs.

"You think chakra can solve all your problems, don't you? You think it is all powerful." She looks him in the eye and his gaze, calm and unsettling as it is, holds a hint of curiosity.

"Chakra solves many problems." He answers and she asks, "Can it heal a broken heart? Can it make money? Can it bring back the dead or create new things out of nothing?"

He pauses before answering, "The heart heals on its own. Money, yes. Ask Kakuzu. And it can make anything. We can create fire and water without the source near us."

Raven sighs.

She leans back, eyes closed, and rubs the sides of her forehead. She cannot even begin to understand how they are all here. A part of her just wishes they were back in their world. Back to where they cannot get her. Back to where they never found her.

Her thoughts turn back to the first night she came to their world. She remembers the forest, the battle that lead to her first meeting with Hidan and Kakuzu, and how she met Belle and her family.

She can see Yuna's smiling face and her pale features in her mind.

She can see Belle and her son's dark hair and green eyes.

She can see the husband with his brown hair and green eyes.

A part of her misses them. She misses the freshness of their world. She misses the strange sights and the odd happenings.

More than anything, she misses the freedom.

Then she remembers the things she doesn't miss. She doesn't miss the perverts, the crazy ninja trying to kill her, or the unpredictable flying men that leap across rooftops.

Then the last memory arrives.

She can see Hidan smashing through a brick wall. She can see the clouds of debris rolling across the ground and the black tendrils shooting out of it with the intention to impale her. She can see Hidan's scythe swinging through the air. She can hear his maniacal laughter. She can see the blood lusting glint in his eyes.

She can see the scythe reflecting in her eyes. She can feel the air hissing past her cheek as she dunks and the blade misses. The area, what was once black and white in her mind, is slowly bleeding itself to life.

And then, unlike in her memory, the blade buries itself in the wall next to her face. A moment of hesitation rings clearly in her thoughts.

Hadn't she…just…been home?

However, she cannot pursue such thoughts for black tendrils are flying right at her. She dives out of the way and sprints down the street.

"Get back here, you bitch!" she hears Hidan roar in the distance.

_Holy shit, what's going on? How did I come back? I didn't feel the pull!_ Her thoughts clash together as she runs down the street.

She screams when the black tendrils wrap around her waist. Her feet are forced from the ground and she struggles against the hold on her.

"Caught you." She hears him say from behind her and then a blade is pressed to her throat.

"You are dead, woman. No one beats me with a fucking tree." She hears Hidan hiss and his hair, glowing in the light of the moon, gives him the look of a savage angel.

His eyes, a light shade of violet, are an appealing factor.

Only if he had the manners to support such looks.

But, sadly, she fears he does not.

"Dead, am I?" she asks and he grins.

"Damn straight."

She pictures him in her mind. She can see him slowly moving the blade away, pulling it away from her, and that the tendrils slowly unraveling from her body. Even as she pictures it in her mind it happens. A look of confusion slips on Hidan's face and she takes a moment to picture him unmoving until she is far, _far_ away.

She slips out from between the two men. Neither move.

Neither blinks.

Neither _breathes_.

She steps back a few more steps. She keeps her mind on them, watches them, and hopes that they do not unfreeze. Then she turns her back and runs.

She isn't sure where she plans on going.

She does not know how she came back to this world our why she arrived in the last moment before she returned home. If anything, she was expecting to full that pull.

And Hidan and Kakuzu don't seem to remember being in her world.

And, even as she thinks back to those few hours, they start to slip past her mind.

They slip through her fingers like water.

It brings a sense of uncertainty.

It makes her uneasy.

Sick to her stomach.

And then Pein's words ring in her mind, "_Anyplace can be found under the right means."_

If Hidan and Kakuzu do not recall than Pein doesn't. Neither does the rest of the men that came with her. Then she realizes why.

She came back to the time right before the transportation. It is like it never happened.

But then…why are memories of her home slipping from her again?

_I need to get away from them and stay away. Maybe I can tell someone, the authority here, that there are ninjas trying to kill me, _she pauses and then frowns.

It is possible that would work. They would protect her.

But, if Hidan and Kakuzu come after her again, those who protect her will be in danger. They don't have her ability to influence the actions of others. They cannot control them just by visualizing it.

But maybe, just maybe, there are jutsus that do that. Whatever a jutsu is…

She finds the edge of the town and she takes off down the path. The sun is starting to rise and light will be falling on the village.

And two frozen men who are dangerous will be there.

Talk about a surprise.

Hopefully someone ties them up before they unfreeze.

That would turn out bad.

And then they would be after her again…maybe.

She precedes to pull up her hood, the silky material so black that she blends in with her surroundings, and she easily moves down the path. Her boots make no sound as she walks and, as she continues onward, her silky black hair brushes her cheeks. The pink highlights have long since faded from her hair and her eyes, the same smoky color as they have always been, are no longer tinted by eye-contacts.

In every way, she looks like a goth. Again.

She has the long black hair, the dark eyes, the black eyeliner, the black clothing, the black cloak, and, of course, the black boots. Not a spot of color on her – save her pale skin.

She sighs as she walks forward towards an uncertain future. She cannot image what this world holds in store for her but she is aware of one thing.

If she goes home than, most likely, this world will jerk her back. She has to be here.

She doesn't have a choice in that matter.

At all.

So she squares her shoulders and lets her head sink slightly. She decides that, for now, she will explore and, hopefully, she will find out the meaning along the way. Then she will find a way home that won't force her back and she won't take all those people with her.

Yes.

In a situation like this one needs a plan.

And she just found hers.

* * *

Another chapter. I was writing and trying to figure out what to do with the story. Well, Raven's back in Naruto World and, oddly enough, Hidan and Kakuzu don't know a thing! And she knows a bit more about them! This spells trouble, doesn't it? However, with trouble, comes more to write.

And how I love to write.

I hope you all enjoyed this.

I'll try to work on another of my stories so that they are all updated.

CideanForever


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **If you have to say something that is not nice than leave it out of the reviews. PM me about it. No flaming me, please.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Eight**

* * *

If there is one thing Raven hates, it would be waiting. She hates it. _Loathes_ it in fact. She cannot think of anything worse than that – expect, maybe, a silver haired man with gorgeous eyes and a sickening personality and a mouth that would kill a saint. Yeah. She would rather sit here, on this bench inside while a storm rages outside, than be stuck with that murderous man who enjoys killing people as much as he enjoys swearing.

Best evade him. And his partner.

It has been three days since she last saw them. Three days since she returned home and was forced back into this world where ninjas have this thing called chakra that allows them to do things that no human should _ever_ be able to do. Like breathing fire out of their mouth.

She still cannot see how they avoid burning their tongue.

She has went from town to town, carefully maneuvering the paths she walks and doing her best to blend into her surroundings, but luck ran out on her this day. It is almost impossible not to stare.

Not with _him_ standing next to the doorway with an ally.

Deidara and Tobi.

She can see their backs with ease. She knows that long, lush blond hair and she knows the black hair with a mask covering the face. How can she forget?

Instead, she stares at the door next to them. Tries to look bored and that she doesn't really care about the people surrounding her. But she knows the blond, Deidara, has seen her.

He saw the surprise on her face before she looked the other direction.

She saw his brows furrowing like he was trying to recall a long-since forgotten memory that dances along the edge of his senses. But he doesn't know her, doesn't know that she can force him to fly through the air with ease, or the fact she knows _who_ he is.

And then there is the third one. The puppet Sasori who is sitting two chairs down from her drinking a cup of something strong smelling is the one who is making her increasingly nervous. She wants nothing more than to jump up and leave but that, sadly, would cause a scene. They would think she knows something and pursue her. And she doesn't want to take the chance of running into Hidan and Kakuzu with those three near.

She would be outnumbered to the extreme. Facing Hidan and Kakuzu alone is hard and, as she discovered, using her BP (Brain Power) exhausts her.

And, if she uses it to much, it makes her sick to the stomach and dizzy. After freezeing Hidan and his partner, the two must have stayed frozen. She came to this conclusion due to the fact that the farther she was from them the harder it was to walk. It became increasingly hard when the dizziness set in and when her stomach started to hurt.

Forcing something to freeze requires concentration. As she left them, she kept an image of them in her mind – frozen. She didn't let it out until she was certain that she was a good distance away.

Then, as she let the visual drop, it felt like she hasn't slept in days. Soon enough, she came across a town, and found an inn.

Took a couple jobs – like pulling helpless cats out of trees, walking dogs, and babysitting. Earned some extra cash and went on into the next town. She repeated that process until she wandered into this town.

Then the rain – and, wa-la, here she is – sitting in a café-like place with three dangerous men around her. Two who are in the front and the last is practically next to her. The only thing between them is four stools and she hardly doubts that will stop him from clearing the space.

Then, to her surprise, the blond plops down next to her. Tobi, the masked man himself, takes the seat on her other side.

_Shit._

As calmly as possible, she picks up her glass and takes a sip before setting it down again. The man behind the counter looks extremely uncomfortable and asks if she would like another refill. She answers with a 'yes, please' and makes a mental note where everything in this room is at.

Door to the kitchen – behind the counter.

Stairs – far side of the room.

Door outside – front of the room.

Giant butcher knife – on the counter behind her.

Bath-

"You gonna finish that, un?" she slowly turns to look at him, hoping this isn't the same person.

After all, the Deidara she met for a short amount of time said 'hmm' didn't he?

He gestures at the plate next to her hand and she casts a look at the dango sitting there before pushing it towards them. He flashes a smile at her before digging in.

She lifts up her glass, now full, and takes another drink. A longer one this time.

Then, "Hey, where you headed, un?"

She casts a glance at the nosy blond as she answers, "Nowhere in peculiar."

A frown mars his features before Tobi, at her other side, asks, "Shouldn't Ninja-san be going _some_where?"

_Great, their under the impression I'm a ninja. Just my freaking luck._

Instead she shrugs. "I'm a traveler of sorts. I'm on a journey."

"A journey for what?" her glance lands on the third male, the puppeteer, and she fights the urge to run away screaming.

"Self-discovery." An easy and simple answer.

However, the looks that she receives only make her feel a lot more uneasy.

"Miss, your drink?" she turns to the man at the counter and hands him her drink. He takes it with a smile and heads into the kitchen only to return a second later with another glass full of the odd liquid she ordered.

"Can Tobi have a drink?" asks the masked man and she sighs.

She hands her glass over and he takes it with a nod. He moves only enough of the mask to get to his mouth but that's it. After a few swallows, he hands it back.

She opts to stare at the glass.

She drinks from the other end.

A light giggle comes from beside her before Tobi puts in, "Wow, Ninja-chan sure can hold her alcoholic drinks! That stuff is strong!"

Alcohol? She looks down at the glass before groaning.

Not even twenty-one and already drinking. Six years from the drinking age…

If her mother ever learns of this she will kill her.

"Didn't you know, un?" Deidara suddenly asks and she replies, "I didn't pay attention to what I pointed at."

He raises a brow but shrugs before ordering a glass of the same drink. Sasori puts in his own order and Tobi asks for milk. Raven just gives him an odd look.

The four sit in silence, each drinking their own drink, waiting for the storm to let up. Finally, the man behind the counter asks, "Ah, miss, about that question…"

She turns to face him and sees the look he is giving the man. "Find it?"

A nod. "Alright, just write it down then."

Another nod and he vanishes into the kitchen. Deidara asks, "What was _that_ about, un?"

"Different inns in town." Another simple answer.

The man behind the counter reappears and hands her a sheet of paper. She lets her gaze flicker down the list and she nods. She stuffs it into her cloak pocket as she stands.

"Thank you for your hospitality." She hands him the money and turns on her heels.

She exits the café-life place with a hurried step and the rain, coming down without any mercy, soaks her on contact. A light groan slips from her lips. She would rather deal with the rain than with three males she wants to avoid. And Hidan and Kakuzu. They make the top of the list – they are, certainly, still pissed with her.

She presses onward and soon finds the place she will be spending the night in. She pushes the door open, goes to the counter, takes a room, hands over the money, and takes the key. Then she makes her way upstairs.

"Kami, what a day…" she groans as she slips into her assigned room.

And she just cannot shake the feeling that things are about to get a lot worse.

* * *

Wow, i haven't had any updates on this one in a while. I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

CideanForever


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not that. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **I will say this - there is swearing in this and a bit of 'adultness'. It that's what you want to call it. Anyway, someone would say that it goes up a bit higher than T but it isn't M just yet. Anyway, read and, at the end, leave a comment.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Nine**

* * *

Back at home, a conversation would be something like this:

'Oh my, what lovely weather we are having.'

That would be followed by, 'Why yes, it is.'

Then the two would shake hands, trade a friendly smile, and go their separate ways. At home, that is how Raven preferred it. It was natural – if not a bit odd and overly old fashioned.

However, as the black-haired invader has come to realize, everything in this ninja-infested world runs backwards. So instead of having a 'how are you morning' or a 'did you sleep well morning' she is stuck with her bedroom door being bashed in. That is followed by a lot of screaming, swearing, scythe swinging, tendril throwing, and a pissed off Raven.

So, naturally, silver-haired, saint killing, swear-worshipper was a bit shocked when her fist collided with his face and he was tossed back into his partner who, in turn, shot out into the hall. She leveled an icy glare on them before slamming the door shut.

And, of course, about five seconds later, the door flies into the room. Literally.

The bastard had the nerve to kick her door in and leave a gapping whole in the wall as if to say, 'Hey, look at me! Hidan was here!' and furthermore, to make her even angrier.

And, as she had predicted the night before, it gets a lot worse. Namely, he grabs her, throws her, and pins her to her own bed. His grip tightens around her throat.

"I've had enough of this fucking bullshit!" he snarls and Raven, struggling to breath, grits her teeth.

She can already feel Kakuzu's tendrils slowly inching up each leg, wrapping around her arms, and she can see Hidan's sadistic grin on his face. Instead of freaking out, like any normal person would in this situation, she forces her body to relax under her captor. The frown on his brow only helps fuel her need to beat this situation.

Within the depth of her mind, she already is going through the actions she wants make. It takes little effort to force his grip on her throat to loosen, for him to shift like he is suddenly uncomfortable, and then with one last push. She forces him to stand.

"W-what the hell?" He is starting to panic.

And before his partner can even move, she says, "I advise you remove your tendrils from me or your partner will suffer the consequences."

He steps closer, sinking next to her, and she can feel his fingers brush the exposed skin of her throat with such gentleness that it could be mistaken for a lover's caress. The fingertips pause under her chin, gripping ever-so-gently, and tilt her head to look at him. His eyes are cold, but they are also keeping a steady hold on her – watching her every move.

She can feel the tendrils, cold and thin, rest passively on her chest. She can feel them stirring, shifting, and parts break the thin shirt that covers her to reach the untouched skin. Imminently, her checks flush with warmth and her stomach knots and surges.

"Do you think that I truly care what happens to Hidan? You can behead him and he will live." His voice is low, a gentle whisper that ghosts over her senses, but she forces herself to answer, "Even an immortal can be killed if one has the knowledge to do so."

His grip tightens but his voice is even as he replies, "And am I supposed to believe that you, a young girl with hardly _any_ chakra, have such knowledge?"

"You old bastard, just _kill_ her already!" Hidan snaps but he remains still – unable to move just yet.

Kakuzu ignores him and takes to tracing her features with a gentle touch before remarking, "Sasori would appreciate your untouched beauty. I can only image what he would do with you."

Beauty? Did he just call her pretty?

"Damn it, Kakuzu, less touching and more killing!" the more patient ninja lets his hand trail down her throat to her chest to rest over her rapidly beating heart.

Her eyes close. She forces her body to utter limpness so that every part is still, lifeless.

She can feel Kakuzu's gaze on her face, but she keeps her eyes closed. She slowly lets her hold on Hidan loosen and can hear his voice. She can hear him talking, saying something to Kakuzu about it being 'damn time' for him to move again.

She already has her next step to escape planned. She only hopes it will work. And, as she lies so still on her bed with a stranger's hand resting on her chest for any sign of whatever he is looking for, she can feel the first sign of heat beneath her back.

She can feel it moving down to her legs and up to her arms. She can feel it pool in the blankets, unnoticeable but there, as it pools under her limps and no farther. She can feel it increase in power till she fears it will burn her.

"How the _hell_ can she be that fucking still with you threatening to rip out her heart?" Hidan sounds confused. A small victory on her part.

Then the bed sinks a bit more and she knows that Hidan has taken a seat. She knows both of them are starring at her.

Finale part of plan: action.

The heat breaks free and the bed looses the say to it as they both jump away. She can feel the fire licking her skin, free from hiding beneath her, and the heat is painful. But she only pushes to expand, to move from the bed to the floor, and as it does so she focuses on loosening the black threads that have worked as her bindings.

With them undone, she leaps up, and darts out of the room.

She can hear Hidan screaming more swears than any other time and she knows that they are chasing her. Chasing her like the world is soon to die.

And, as she bursts out of the inn's front doors, three faces look startled. Three faces that were in the shop the other night. And then she hears Kakuzu yelling at them to catch her.

_Shit, this is what I was trying to avoid. _She picks up speed, dodging between people in the street, and hearing exclamations of 'Akatsuki!' at every turn.

She is halfway down the next street when an explosion sends an aftershock of energy slamming into her and sends her sprawling onto the ground. She rolls over onto her back to see Tobi, the masked ninja himself, coming down on her.

Her arm shoots up and she sends another rush of fire from her body into her arm and then into her palm before shooting it into him in a matter of seconds. She leaps up to her feet, sees the blond rushing her, and jumps out of the way before twisting to avoid the blue chakra-like strings from the red-head. Then Hidan and Kakuzu close in on her.

She twists and sends a powerful burst of energy into the air around her. The two slam right into it and sends them shooting backwards.

As she twists out of another attack, someone's hands seal around her wrists and twist her arms behind her back. Then she is forced to her knees and she grits her teeth as she lets the fire ravage her body.

The pained cry from her assaulter is music to her ears.

She whirls around, comes face to face with Tobi once again, and slams her palms onto his chest. She can see him shooting back in her mind moments after he goes flying.

She twists, forcing one of them to fly towards her, and then twists. She changes the pull and the pressure of it so that when he shoots backwards, he goes right through a building.

Every image that she pictures in her mind comes after the initial attack. She is moving a great deal faster than she ever has and each attack is being fueled by her mind alone. And, maybe, she is starting to get a hang of her attacks to the point that she doesn't need as much of a mental picture as she did before. Unless wielding attacks she hasn't used before – like the fire.

She twists out from under another attack and sends her attacker flying through the air. She winces when one blade grazes her side and the pain is the cause of her stagger. And, as she stumbles, she also notices that she isn't fighting alone anymore.

Many ninja in black wearing masks shaped as an animal are with her. One lands at her side, hand flickering to her side, and she watches as the healing chakra encases his hand. Then the pain is gone.

She nods her thanks before twisting. She staggers when another explosion goes off.

One of the black-clad ninja grabs her and leaps off the ground. She watches in awe as an inferno swallows the area below and holds onto her savoir even as they land on top of a roof. She lets her gaze flicker back and forth, between building, and from ground to sky in hopes she will see them.

"They have left." Another black-clad ninja says as she lands next to her.

The one who has a firm hold on her replies, "Any clue as to which direction they went?"

"No. They used the explosion as a shield and masked their chakra. We have trackers out already. If we are lucky, we will pick up their trail." The female answers before turning her attention onto Raven.

Raven, using this time to catch her breath, is trying to calm her breathing and stop the flow of tears that is staining her checks. Another ninja, unlike the others, lands in front of them and she cannot help but stare at the gravity-defying hair. And the silver color of it is shocking.

"It is good that we arrived when we did, is it not?" he says and the two holding her step away.

"Yes. Thank you." She replies and he nods.

"Sensei!" two voices shout out and she is shocked as two people land next to her.

The blond grins as he looks around the area before asking, "What'd we miss, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Akatsuki." Raven answers and the blond, and the pink-haired female, both turn to look at her with wide eyes.

"A-Akatsuki?" the pink-haired female whispers and Raven nods, "Yeah, your sensei here saved me from them. I don't know if I could have held my own much longer."

"You looked to be doing just fine, miss." Kakashi replies before addressing the other two, "Sakura, see if anyone has been injured during the fight. Naruto, stay with this girl here. And, thinking of you, what is your name?"

"Raven, Kakashi-san." She answers and the three nod.

Naruto steps next to her, his arm brushing hers, and slips an arm around her waist. Then the two flicker down to the ground and Sakura, right behind them, starts to check out the surrounding area.

Naruto stays at her side and helps her walk when she sways. He keeps one arm around her and helps her into a shop. The man in the back looks up and asks, "Uh, were closed r – "

"Sorry to bother you, but she needs something sweet to eat. Were Konoha ninja." The man's eyes widen and he rushes into the kitchen.

Naruto has her sit on the stool at the front counter before sitting next to her. She lets her head drop onto the wooden surface even as he says, "We saw the battle from outside the town. Kakashi-sensei was ordering us here in seconds. The Akatsuki are not the easiest people to go against, are they?"

"No. I hate them. I hate them stalking me. I hate them following me. I hate them for attacking me and trying to kill me. I hate Hidan and Kakuzu. I hate Deidara, Tobi, and Sasori. I hate em, hate em, hate em…" she lets her eyes close as exhaustion settles over her.

"Did you Sasori?" her gaze snaps over at Naruto who, at the moment, looks like he just ate a sour warhead.

"Ah, why?" she replies.

He seems uncomfortable but he answers, "Because, he should be dead."

* * *

Another chapter! Finally! This was a longer one. Almost five pages...wow. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed it.

Review, please.

CideanForever


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers: **.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Ten**

* * *

Death on the hang man's head…

Kakuzu pauses, eyes scanning the settling village he and his comrades escaped earlier in the day. He stands, encased in a black cloak, in the shadows of the older buildings. Sasori, who is now standing at his side, has a frown on his face but, besides that, he is calm.

"Your thoughts, Puppet Master?" Kakuzu asks, voice low and raspy.

"She is strong but, like you, I could not sense any chakra in her. Her attacks must be fueled by some kind of illusion or mind trick…"

"Mind trick my ass! That little heathen bitch cannot use an illusion to chuck us through buildings! It ain't fucking possible!" Hidan snarls as he lands next to them.

Kakuzu doesn't spare him a glance as he eyes the girl so far below them. A girl who is talking to the Nine Tail demon's host. A girl who is assuring them that she'll be fine and that they can return to their jobs.

Idiotic.

Kakuzu slowly sinks to sit with his back against the wall. He eyes the city, the girl traveling the streets, and frowns beneath his mask.

She…is unusual. She has escaped them time and again. She has weaved her way out of their clutches more than once.

They need…a different approach. Their usual methods will not work.

"Have you informed Leader-sama of this problem?"

"I have not. I want to make sure she is worth it. Wasting money is not needed if she is not an actual threat." He ignores Hidan's ranting about him being blasted through walls and being burned by her.

Instead, he watches. He forms strategies in his mind, playing them over, replaying prior events. He thinks of every possible way that can help give them a hand over her.

_Distorted. Pain, lights swirling, and an agonizing headache. In the background he can hear Hidan yelling at him, panic laced in his voice._

_Then it stops. He collides with something soft, flips it, his partner not far behind…_

_Or did he land on the floor?_

_He struggles to raise, the wooden surface pressed against his palms…_

Kakuzu shakes his head as the dream resurfaces. That one dream, always over and over and over, and he cannot rid himself of it.

It felt so real.

It felt as if it happened.

But, when he awoke, he was back in the woods. And, not long after, they ran into that girl again. A girl whose name he does not know. A girl who he cannot find in any record book from any nation. It might be possible she is a nomad.

Then he sees her. Sees her walking through the crowd, sees her stopping to speak with the locals and laughing at the things they say. The blond, Uzumaki, is with her still.

"It appears they do not wish to let her go just yet." Sasori settles down next to him, one arm resting over his knee, and they sit in silence.

Hidan mutters something unintelligent under his breath before leaping off the building, heading to where Deidara and Tobi wait.

"We met her last night. She came into the tavern we were in." the red-head finally says and Kakuzu casts a glance at him.

"And?"

"She spoke a bit to us. Tobi and Deidara mainly. Tobi wanted to taste her drink." He snorts, as if amused by the memory of it, and Kakuzu only sighs.

"A waste of money."

Sasori says nothing to debate this. He turns his attention back to the girl, the one Kakuzu himself watches, and Sasori murmurs, "She would make a good puppet."

"I thought as much."

The two trade a glance, but they say nothing.

After so long, Kakuzu stands.

"It is time we head out."

**OoOoO**

Dead? How the hell is Mr. Red Head with blue chakra string thingies supposed to be dead? Last she saw he was more than alive. He was breathing, fighting, and taking her mental attacks like a pro.

Until she blasted him through a wall right after Tobi.

He wasn't expecting that, she is sure. Instead, she ambles through the village, reluctant to leave it behind just yet. Kakashi and his team left after she persuaded them to leave. A little mental tinkering was used but it was worth it.

She knows those men will come after her again. They hold grudges worse than a landlord does and they are not shy of chasing. They seem to get a thrill out of it.

She finds a cute stall at the end of the street and slips inside. She wanders through the aisles, looking but not really seeing.

Instead, her thoughts turn to the Akatsuki. The group of highly skilled assassins who are wanted criminals across the nations of this world. That was information she managed to pry from Kakashi without any of them really noticing.

She bids the shopkeeper a nice night and leaves. By now the sky is darkening, the days trouble fading and nothing but news to the people. Without a look back, she slips out of the village and into the flowing hills around it.

And as she walks, she casts a look over her shoulder at the village.

"I don't reckon I'll return there." She mutters to herself as she thinks of the events that transpired there that morning.

"Bastard busted down my door…"

Yeah, if she sees him again, she'll show him that immortality has its faults.

He best run because it is soon to come.

And she grins.

She is looking forward to it.

* * *

Another chapter!

Review, please.

CideanForever


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: Here is another chapter - this one is a bit odd. It is also longer.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Eleven**

* * *

_The Grim Reaper really must hate me_, Raven muses to herself as she dodges another swipe from a rogue ninja's sword.

She twists out of the way, blasting him away with a gentle shove of her mind. She digs inside of him, taking things he will never miss. Small memories, of hate for a woman he once loved or a small apple that he forgot at home when he was small. She makes others memories stronger – like when he was five and won an award for placing second in a chakra control contest.

At first, he seemed surprised.

Shocked, even – but she tried something more subtle. She gentle pressed her mind into his, stroking it to a different level of thinking. She bent it, curled it around her, and slowly encouraged him that he no longer wants to fight her.

He paused, eyes unfocused and confused.

_But Death loves me so much he wishes to wring my neck, _she brushes his arm with the tips of her fingers, an arm that once held her pinned to the ground.

She carefully props at the mind she is investigating. She knows there is something that she cannot recall, something that has slipped from her thoughts, and she hopes this mind might answer her questions.

_You do not want to kill me. _She whispers the words into his mind and, finally, he relaxes.

He lowers his arm, his eyes cloud over as she roots herself in the inner sanctum of his mind, and he sways as if pushed by a gentle breeze. To her relief, the cover of night shields them from view. Any ninja that wishes to see would have to come into her range of awareness.

Over the days that have passed, she has gotten good at this type of attack. Bending her opponents to her will, it makes battling that much easier. The effort is taxing, but it always has good results in the end – primarily no one dying.

Her mental attacks are much stronger. It almost feels as if it isn't as much mental as it is instinctual now. She can easily push someone away, or drag them closer as if pulled by an ultra strong magnet, and seeing them blast forward like they were shot out of a canon is always amusing.

But, at this moment, she is spreading her wings.

She props this ninjas mind, learning facts she never wanted to cross. The first time he killed someone, his first kiss, his first love, the first time he had sex, and the first time he raped. It disgusts her, this mind. It disgusts her to the point that she withdraws, face twisting in revulsion.

She burns some of his mind, twists him into a fractured man, and tells him to turn himself in. Men like him have no place for mercy. She hardly cares if he will be executed.

She watches as he drops to the ground, lies there, and turns on her heel. He will wake by sunrise and he will do what she bid. He will go to the closet village and he will turn himself in.

A light giggle escapes her as she runs her hand through the thick, black locks of hair that fall around her. She can hardly contain her joy as she leaps off the ground, the air holding her as the earth falls away. She can fly, in a sense, but only for short instances.

Like now, as the ground meets her feet with a gentle caress, she knows that the things she can do is not normal. Chakra, in this odd world, comes from the body. There are pathways beneath the flesh and, in it, chakra dwells. It runs its course.

But her energy, her power, is fueled by her mind. It is created there, born from the creativeness of her thoughts, but she figures she will have to calm down a bit. She has already caught Hidan and Kakuzu's attention – both whom wish to kill her more than anyone else she has ever known.

She walks through the grass, exploring it with her senses.

She can feel it brush against her ankles, feel the water in its roots and stem and leaves, and can feel the energy burning in it. She can feel the plant working, the act of respiration burning in it, and knows that once morning arrives photosynthesis will start once again.

This alone inspires her. A plant, a small flower, can make energy out of things around it. It uses it to live and, in return, it helps others – even if that is not its intention. She stops, looking down at the grass at her feet, and frowns.

She clears all thoughts, leaving her mind blank as she sits. With a boulder at her back, it is easy to sit up and relax. She sets one hand next to her, fingers spread out and digging into the grass.

She practices a gentle movement of her hand, a rising and falling action that follows the pull of the ocean and moon. She can feel the grass, the gentle press of moisture against her hand, and smiles. She whips her hand out, a thin strand of water follows. Her gaze goes to the grass next to her, to the brown grass that is waterless and dead.

_If I am more like nature, I will have an upper hand on any who fight me. _She rises, ambling down the hill towards the village that isn't far from where she is.

As she sweeps past the gate, bending minds to allow her though without any calm of alarms, she pulls the hood of her cloak up. She lets it fall over her, to cover her as she moves, and blends in with the shadows the line the edge of the street.

She can feel the people around her, mingling and talking. None of them notice her. None of them see the black figure, a raven all on its own, whisk by them. They see nothing but an empty wall, forgetting about her just as they see her.

Like she doesn't exist.

But something is off. She can feel something following her movement. She stops under the canvases by a store and frowns. She turns slightly, scanning the area.

And she sees him. Itachi and Kisame, standing across the street, both whom are currently staring at her. She meets the Uchiha's eyes, knowing his name but not really remembering where she learned it from. A fading memory that she can hardly cling to.

_Turn away,_ she sees his brow furrow, irritation flickering in those otherwise expressionless eyes.

It should not be possible for him to feel that gentle brush of her mind on his. Yet his eyes darken, the red coming to life with more force than she thought he would. She turns, batting away the darkness slipping up on her.

Genjutsu does not work on her.

And she can feel his unsettledness at this. She can feel it ring in her. She can feel him and his partner moving, following.

_Damn it, _she cuts into an alley, leaping off the ground.

The roof's singled form touches her feet as she glides across it. She leaps off to another roof, higher up than the first one. She can sense the Uchiha's confusion, irritation, and satisfaction. Losing her, looking for her, finding her…

She drops, plummeting into the shadows. She keeps both of their minds, their energy, in mind. She knows their location, knows as they try to circle her. Try to catch her, _It will not work._

She cuts through the allies, past people, and heads closer to the center of the town. To her growing displeasure, they are still on her tail. She cuts into another street, one that is heavily crowded.

_Come and get me…if you can. _She knows he can feel the challenge from her, not in words but in impressions. She can feel him level out his emotions, thinking ahead, pausing and changing his mind.

She presses into the crowd, the people dancing and singing. One boy, a year or so older, grabs her hand and pulls her along. She lets him.

"What's a lady like you doing all hidden in dat cloak?" he asks, a drunken slur to his voice.

"Playing a game of hide-n-seek with a few people I know." Her answer is soft as she slips away from him, using him to distract the two hunting her.

And she can feel their confusion that he would go up to them and bluntly ask if they have seen his date. She smiles, slipping through the crowd.

And they are following again.

She leaps to a rooftop, up to another and another, and pauses beneath an overhanging slab of wood. She sits, eyes already finding her hunters and watching them in the center of the dance. So far up, in the shadows with her blending cloak, she is nearly impossible to see.

But the Uchiha sees her. She can see his eyes staring up at her. Holding her gaze.

_You can only find me if you catch me, _She flickers out of his sight, sinking into the wood and landing in a desolate room before slipping out the back door. That she never gets used to, phasing through things. It makes her feel like a ghost, dead and untouchable.

She likes being touched.

She knows these two Akatsuki are enjoying the hunt. They haven't had a challenge in some time, she can feel this. She knows this will continue.

They will hunt, think, corner, and catch. That does not mean she will make it easy. That wouldn't be fun, not fun at all. She is a challenge, something new and fun. A game of sorts.

She slips from one crowded district to another. The festive areas, people are not afraid of reaching for her. They sense her slipping and, if they act fast enough, they can grab her. Warm and comforting, that is what they are. They bring images from the vanishing past – images of friends, fire places, and smores. They make her warm, wanted.

And then she can feel him, just ahead of her. She frowns, not all aware that he got ahead. The other one, the one with the massive amount of energy pulsing in him – Kisame, if she recalls – is the one behind her.

She slows to a stop, knowing that Itachi is just ahead.

And he steps out of the shadows, black and red cloak fluttering around him. She knows Kisame is behind her, she can feel his heat against her back as he stops. They are tense, both watching.

She cocks her head to the side, Itachi can see her mouth.

She smiles.

* * *

Another chapter! I haven't updated this one but, as you know, things are changing. And why the hell does she keep running into the Akatsuki? She gets away from one and runs into another. This time it is Itachi and Kisame. And her new discovery of her power - is that going to far? I hope not. Anyway, it doesn't work on Itachi. His bloodline limit maybe...or because he is stronger than a normal ninja? LOL - you'll have to wait to find out. And Kisame, will it work on him?

Review, please.

CideanForever


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: Another chapter

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Twelve**

* * *

It was Kisame who had noticed the abnormal actions of the villagers. Had he been another man, he would have lifted a brow in surprise but, alas, he is not another man for he is only Itachi. So he watched what his partner discovered. He watched the one, lone figured cloaked in black slip past people and how they appeared to not even notice. A few who stood before her, as he is certain from the shape of this one person's figure, pointed her pout but forgot right after she passed.

And his Sharingan did not affect her when he met her eyes. The brush of another against his mind, his chakra, was enough to install wariness in him.

So he pursued her.

He had not anticipated that she was dragging him along, playing with him. He had not thought someone had the mind to play with the Akatsuki but she teased them – always flickering in and out of sight.

And now, standing in front of her and seeing a light smile on her half-covered face, he knows that she is not alarmed by him. She smiles at him, relaxed and unworried about the possibilities of what they can do.

"So you caught me." Her voice is soft, a hum against his senses.

Kisame, standing directly behind her, catches his eye as his hand rises to settle on Samehada's handle. He makes to mention to do anything. He watches as she folds her cloaked arms over her chest as she asks, "So what do you plan to do with me? You caught me…I feel that deserves a reward of some kind."

She's still playing with them. It is enough to pull the corner of his lips down, a frown that expresses his displeasure at her manner of speaking with him. So he answers, "Who are you?"

"It depends on who you ask."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Kisame barks from behind her but she does not flinch, she only answers, "I call myself Raven, but others would call me the bane of their existence – mainly a certain man who has a tendency to swear and bash down my door."

Itachi cannot deny it, he is intrigued.

"A reward, you say?" he asks lightly and she hums her agreement.

"Then show me your face." Her hands move, slowly to the edge of her hood, and pushes it back. It settles around her shoulders, a flutter of black silk, but her black hair – a lustrous black that appears to have stars woven in it, dances around her face on the near gone wind. Her eyes, on the other hand, are hard to determine when it comes to naming a color. They appear to be blue but it seems as if it is possible that they could have been another color. A flicker of green appears and he mulls over a new fact – her eyes change color, odd.

He would have to conclude that she is no older than seventeen, but not younger than fifteen. Maybe sixteen, if he had to guess. She could even be seventeen but her comment about her name, the one who would call her the '_bane of his existence_' sounds oddly like Hidan.

But that couldn't be possible considering he would have outright killed her.

Kisame lets out a low whistle, saying, "For a quick little thing, you have features someone can't easily forget."

"I'd say the same thing about you for you happen to be a…pleasant shade of blue." Itachi's eyes narrow, seeing that she can't see Kisame but knows his appearance – they have not met her before this.

Kisame himself stiffened up before saying, "And how do you know I'm blue, girly?"

"If this pleasant fellow is an Uchiha, and from the cloak he is wearing, it is only natural to assume that you are his partner. A partner who is blue." She is quick, pulling common bingo-book facts to mind but something is not right.

"How did you reject the Sharingan?"

"I didn't say I'd give you two rewards, now did I?" she flickers out of sight the moment the sentence is finished, at the far end of the alley, and Kisame curses.

"Fuck, she's quick." They take off after her, pumping chakra into their legs as they do so.

She could counteract his bloodline limit and he will find out how. He knows this more than anyone else and now, with her getting farther and farther ahead, he is certain that the other person she spoke of is, indeed, Hidan. To survive him and Kakuzu, two of the most ruthless murderers of the organization, she is more than aware to who they are.

How she is getting so far ahead is something of a mystery. He recalls the small smile of her pinks lips and the gentle tone of her voice – she was playing with them the entire time.

She will not get away.

She will answer his questions.

He rounds the next corner, skidding to a stop, and eyes the dead end. She isn't there, she isn't in the air, and he cannot sense her. She just…vanished.

"Where the fuck did she go?" his seething partner snaps as he steps up alongside him, head snapping to and fro.

"Gone."

"I got that much."

He frowns, turning to turn his eyes to the sky. She had done this earlier, when she sank through the roof when he spotted her. She hadn't hid her chakra then but now, she tends to stay away. She has no intentions of speaking with them.

"We must inform Pein-sama," Kisame grunts his agreements as they leap off the ground.

They leap across the roofs, out of the village, and Itachi finds a small clearing to settle down into. He leans against a bolder, watches Kisame circle the perimeter, and focuses on the power of his ring. In moments, he is standing before the shadowed version of his leader.

"What is it, Itachi?"

"I come regarding a potential threat to the Akatsuki." He answers swiftly, without pause.

"Speak."

He informs the leader of what has happened, the chase, her ability to negate his genjutsu, and the possibility that she has come across Hidan and Kakuzu. In moments, the Zombie Twins are standing with them and Pein is demanding an answer. Hidan, if anything, sounds pissed off.

"So you fucking ran into that bitch?"

"Hai."

"She is strong." Kakuzu puts in their own experience and their battle with her – and how Deidara, Sasori, and Tobi was with them.

"I see."

"Your orders, Leader-sama?" Itachi asks and the answer comes without pause, "Find her. Test her abilities; find out where she is from. I want answers by the following scheduled meeting."

"As you order."

* * *

Well, it seems that the plot is thickening. I wonder - what does our dear and clever Raven going to do when she finds out she is targeted?

Review, please.

CideanForever


	13. Jan 18, 2011

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: Another chapter

**Rating: T**

**

* * *

**

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Thirteen**

* * *

The days slowly passed, one into the other. Raven has kept her distance, carefully staying to the shadows and bending the laws of physics to her will. Experimenting, mimicking, and expanding have been only one part her growing goals – learning everything possible from others has taken up her every thought. For the first time in years, she finally feels like an actual student. The desire to excel, to become better, it twists inside her like a plague. The memories that she clung to, the ones that had started to slowly drift away, are nearly gone.

What use are they when she can make new memories?

As of now, she is strolling through a bustling city. People surround her on all sides, talking and smiling and doing what they always do. She has her hood down, her hair flowing loosely around her shoulders as she walks. She has her cloak stored inside the bag she carries at her hip, choosing a emerald kimono to match the current color of her eyes and the white honeycombs lining the sleeves give her an elegant look. She looks like some rich girl strolling through the streets, getting away from the craziness of home.

She can feel a few people staring at her. A boy even comes to her side, asking her where she is from.

She smiles sweetly, batting her eyes and telling him she is from out of town. She also asks if he knows where the closet restaurant is. He happily leads her there.

In these last few days, the need to sleep has decreased. Her energy has risen, increased, and at times it feels as if she will burst from the well that is boiling inside of her. So much power, so much energy, and no useful way to use it. It makes her skin itch.

The walk into the cozy shop, a shop lined with counters and cakes and pastries. "Is this good, hime-chan?"

Hime-chan, that is a new title for her. She cocks her head to the side, one finger resting on the plump flesh of her lower lip. She looks around, a smile forming, "Yes, it is. Shall you eat with me?"

His face heats up and his eyes glow.

Yes, the more she works at it, the better she is able to twist people around. There is no twisting on this male, to internal influence on her part. He is more than stunned by her, captured by the foreignness of her. It is an instant crush, a shyness that she has hardly ever come by when with the opposite sex – it makes her feel warm inside. Feeling wanted, desired, is a feeling that she does not want to let go just yet.

The waitress comes up, taking their orders. She returns, glasses of wine in hand. Raven thanks her for her work, smiling at her, and turns to the male sitting across from her.

"So what is it that you do?" she asks him and he shifts, a blush spreading across his checks.

"Well, I'm a medic." He smiles, a soft play of tugging lips and quick glances.

"A medic? Not a ninja?" intently curious, she learns forward.

He nods and goes into a deeper explanation of his job when she prompts him too. He explains about the work, the people that come through, and the types of medical jutsus that he has learned. He even shows her, shows her the soft green hum of healing chakra, and explains how it works. How they can see injuries inside others, heal them, and how far healing has come over the years. She cannot help but smile when she sees how proud he is.

"It is a good thing, to be a healer. You cure people, not kill them." She runs her hand through her hair, a gentle smile tugging her lips when he meets her eyes.

"I love what I do. Healing people, there is a great satisfaction in it." The waitress comes up, a plate of cake in her hands.

She sets it before them, asking if they would like refills on their drinks. They both take one as they turn to the desert sitting before them.

"What of you? Are you a ninja of any sort?" he asks and she cocks her head to the side, a playful quirk of her lips, "No, not in the way you are thinking. My expertises lie in an entire different place."

"Really? Is it a Bloodline Limit?"

She nods, "It is. Where I am from, it is rare to get it. I was fortunate, really. Sadly, my mother has no notion of this. I have not seen her in…quite some time."

His eyes soften, "That's sad. I'd be lost without my mom. She supported me in my decision to be a medic."

"Your dad did not?"

"No, not in the family I came from. It's a ninja family, and I broke the pattern." He takes another bite of his cake as she comments, "Then pay him no heed. If he cannot be happy that his son has found what he wants to spend his life doing, then he deserves no thoughts from the one that is happy."

He pauses, "Thank you."

She casts one look out the window, at the slowly setting sun, "I'm afraid I will have to leave. I'm running late, it seems."

He looks sad about this announcement. He stands, pays the bill as the waitress comes around. He even opens the door as they exit.

"I know this is going to sound odd, but it's almost dark. Wouldn't you rather wait till morning to set out?" she pauses, hands folded in front of her, and then smiles.

"Maybe so, but I'm afraid I'm pressed for time."

"I thought as much. Listen, where are you heading?"

"I think I believe I have taken an interest in Suna. I came across some Konoha ninjas not long ago and I have heard that Suna is an alley. I thought I would check it out." He nods, a smile pulling at his lips as he does so.

"At least let me grab some medical cards for you. It should bring down the cost of anything you need once you get there! Anyway, I have to head that way next week." They continue walking down the street, both chatting away.

He pauses in front of a large house, slipping inside with her at his heels. An older woman looks up from where she is working, eyes brightening. Raven can see him explaining her appearance to his mother, her smiling, and telling him where she placed the medic cards.

Within the next few minutes, he returns. In his hands is a small box that he hands to her.

"All you have to do when you enter a town is hand one of those cards to the central hospital. They'll do the rest for you. I'd wish you wait till morning to leave." She smiles, reassuring him that she will be fine on her way to Suna.

She leaves shortly afterwards, weaving one of her own energy barriers around the place to protect the two who were nice to her. She carefully pushes energy into her, the ground and scenery vanishing.

She lands outside the city, turning to look down at it. Her kimono is gone, replaced by the regular ninja uniform and black cloak. Green eyes now blue look on coldly at her surroundings.

Yes, a ninja who can have more than one face is one that can be dangerous.

She turns on her heel, pumping her own chakra into her body and flaring it. She shoots off the ground, covering distances much faster. It is her hope to find Suna within the next day.

To find it just as these Akatsuki are trying to find her.

* * *

Raven is getting better at what she does. And it seems she already knows that our favorite band of criminals are looking for her...hmm, what could she possibly have in store for them?

Review, please.

CideanForever

****

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

Thirteen


	14. February 04, 2011

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: Another chapter

**Rating: T**

**

* * *

**

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Fourteen**

* * *

Finding Suna was a lot easier then she thought it would be.

Raven stands on the browning cliffs overlooking the city with a light smile on her face. She can see the town stretching out below; see the desert city and the sand swirling in the wind. She feels oddly at ease now that she is here. She has managed to stay away from the Akatsuki – but she saw glimpses of Itachi and Kisame throughout the day. Thankfully she stayed away – their encounter drained her of energy.

But she knows they are not far behind.

They never are and now they are swarming live a hive of killer bees.

She scowls.

Without a thought to it, she lets herself fall forward. The air hisses as she plummets towards the sandy ground below, eyes closed. She twists with ease, landing on all four like a cat. Her eyes open, a bright green in the desert and she grins.

She makes her way to the gateway, walking past them without a backward glance. She enters the bustling town, hood now down, and smiles to herself. Yes, this place looks good enough to visit for a few days.

If anything, it will be a good place to relax while she thinks of where to go next.

Or how to solve her steadily eroding memory problems that are beyond worrying – sickeningly terrifying.

That is something that has stumped her. One should not randomly start losing days of their memory like someone who is elder or…well, dead. It doesn't make any sense. Even as she tries to grasp the broken edges, she only knows that it is getting that much harder to hold onto what is left. It is as if something is taking her memories, blending her into her surroundings till there is nothing left but her – a shell of what once existed. It is an oddly disconnecting feeling.

She continues through the town, thoughtful but alert. She already knows Kisame is in the town, she felt the brush of his chakra not long ago.

And that means Itachi isn't far behind…

…and neither is Kakuzu. And she knows what that means.

Hidan is near.

She smiles.

**OoOoO**

"I ain't his fucking slave, you old bastard." He grumbles as he tugs at the collar of his reversed cloak and scowls at the surrounding population.

"Silence yourself or I'll cut out that tongue of yours." His surly partner snaps and he rolls his eyes.

"You'll have to sow it back it, so it'd be a wasted effort, bastard."

His answer is a glare and he shrugs. "What makes Itachi think the girl is here, anyway?"

His partner shoots a look at him that clearly says that he is an idiot. His lip goes up in a snarl as an answer and snaps, "Don't give me that look, bastard!"

"Then pay attention." And then his partner leaves.

He looks around the crowded area, eyes scanning his surroundings. And then his mind turns to the girl they are hunting by order.

It turns to her and how she has changed, little by little, every time they meet.

The first time – she beat him with a tree as she ran away.

Second time – she rand but blasted them through walls or froze them.

Third time – she tricked them and, again, blasted them around.

Each time she is crueler. Craftier.

Darker.

It is as if her eyes are changing, showing the person she is becoming. He wonders if she is even aware of the change. He doubts it, having seen it happen countless times to others. They are never aware but, oh, how dangerous they can be.

It makes the battle sweeter.

He sighs, turning to cast a full sweep over the area – and catches a flicker of long, black hair. He knows it is her.

The swift, water-like movements scream it.

His scowl turns into a blood-thirsty grin.

Screw the leader's orders. He'll have some fun with this one, this odd girl who is rapidly changing into something new. Something dangerous, something captivating, something luring and enticing…

And, as if sensing his thoughts, her eyes meet his.

They're green – narrowed with wisdom and long years that are beyond her.

The innocent gray-blue is gone, a wild beast left in its place. She doesn't even move as he starts towards her, hands not moving once towards the weapon hidden in the scroll at his hip. It pains him so, to do that, but his scythe will lure attention to him.

It will make him known.

And he doesn't want anyone knowing just yet.

No, as he stops in front of her, he knows that this game will be a hidden one. And, as he looks down at her with an unreadable expression on his face, he can see the smile etching itself onto her face.

They eyes clash – green against violet.

Young female against immortal male.

Hunter against Hunter.

The ultimate game, the truest form of battle…

Oh yes, this will be fun indeed.

* * *

I'm sorry if my writing isn't as good - it's, like, one in the morning. I've been writing all night to get this freaking chapter done. I've rewritten time and time again. Then again, my plots tend to come clear and sharp when I've only had a few hours of sleep. It's Friday - even if my computer says it's not. It's, like, two hours slow - so it says it is 11:09 at night on Thursday.

Damn, why do computers hate me so much?

Anyway, on an ending note, I have three other chapters to put up - which I will be doing shortly. Also - check my Profile: I've added some things to it that you all might find useful. If not, oh well. You can PM me about anything on it, or leave it in a review - I want to know what everyone thinks. Thanks for reading this far, everyone. You have no idea how much it means to me.

Review, please. (and not because I'm a review whore...which I kind of am...but that's beside the point)

CideanForever


	15. March 09, 2011

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: Another chapter

**Rating: T**

**

* * *

**

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Fifteen**

* * *

She wasn't surprised when Hidan found her. She had expected him to. Desire him to. He was the first she went up against, the first to run from. The first to outthink. He was always right behind her, scythe screaming with the intent of a bloody battle.

He's taller. He's physically stronger then her. But she's faster, quicker in so many ways. But the heat coming off him, the predator aura, is tempting. Even as her gaze shifts, meeting violet, she can see the same drive. The same temptation to launch into a deadly game.

"You found me, I see." One brow lifts.

"So I have." No swear word, no taut. Just a cool, calm tone.

Hunter waking.

She steps to the side. Notices that he doesn't move to stop her, gaze following.

Her own energies are cast out, searching. She can feel the others, all too far away to participate in their game. No one to get in the way. No one to stand in the way.

She can feel the looks they are getting. For someone who doesn't know their history, the looks would be lustful. In some aspect, it would be. But the lust is for battle, for thrill. For the feel of the world blurring around them, blending together and winding. It isn't sexual. And if it is, she wouldn't know. Lust, love, desire – those are things she isn't familiar with. Things she cannot remember. Things that are becoming more and more interesting.

With a playful smile, she slips into the crowd.

She can feel the spike in his chakra, the pull of her mind on his own.

She can see him following.

Can sense him as clearly as the hot air grazing over her.

At one point, his hand grazes the back of her cloak.

At another point, it nearly catches her wrist.

They blur through the crowd, their bodies speeding faster than civilian eyes can see. Behind her, Hidan gladly pursues. Blood boiling, tempting smells, adrenaline rising thrills – she just might be one of the best things to happen besides his daily killings and Jashin. She has infuriated him, thrilled him with the chase, and confused him. All at the same time.

And Kakuzu is intrigued.

All the Akatsuki is intrigued, curious, thrilled.

But he found her first.

He has first claim.

He dodges people, following with intent. His own sweep of the area tells him that they are getting farther and farther away from his comrades. Getting away, deeper into the village. Traveling deeper than he should, not without the Uchiha to say to head this way. Not so close to the Kazekage's home.

Up ahead, he sees her cut into an alley. He cuts in right after her, watches as she stops at the dead end. She stands there, staring at the wall for a moment. He feels the urge to pull his scythe from the scroll, to leap into battle.

But he steps forward, closing in like a wolf on its prey.

He pauses several feet away, watching. His skin is clammy, heart faster than normal. He licks his lips, a grin etching its way on his face.

"Tell me, Hidan, if you could have one thing…" she pauses, one hand pushing her raven-colored locks off her face, "…what would it be?"

Power…

Money…

Fame…

Respect…

Freedom.

He closes the distance between them.

"Anything?"

"Anything."

He grins, "I'd say fuck to my organization and do the one thing I want most right now. That's the best damn thing I can think of."

He watches as a black brow rises into her hairline.

"And what would that be?"

Standing above her, no glare but curious gleam, his grin settles into a thoughtful twist of his mouth.

"You ask what I want. I want power, respect, and damned freedom. I have them."

He steps closer, breaking the personal bubble.

"Yet there is something…else…that you desire, ne?"

"Stop fucking with my head, woman. I'm not a damned idiot."

He grabs onto her hand, fingers twisting into her hair. Cradling the back of her skull with rough force.

Stilling her.

Holding her in place.

"I kill people for my god. Slaughter them, make them scream. Their pain is my damned desire."

"Your perspective on life sucks."

"And how the hell does that work?"

Civil Hidan, unexpected.

"Desire comes from many things. If killing is the only thing, then you're missing out on life."

"Then I guess its damn time to learn something new."

With crushing force, his mouth molds with hers. Pulling her off the ground, back pressed to the rough stone of the alley wall, he dominates. He takes full control. He commits a sin so pleasurable that it's painful in the eyes of Jashin.

* * *

That...was unexpected to me. My intention wasn't a kiss - more of a stab. Or many stabs. But Hidan took over! Note for the future - never ask Hidan what he wants. He'll sin.

Review, please.

CideanForever


	16. June 28, 2011

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: Honestly, I'm not sure if the rating of this chapter should go up to M. It isn't that bad, not really. Just a bit...suggestive. In many ways. I had to keep pace with what happened last time. Drag it out because, honestly, a sinning Hidan is awesome to write. And fun. But I tried to keep him in character, but I'm not sure how I did on this chapter considering his...situation. I'll let you all judge that!

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Sixteen**

* * *

She can't remember if she's ever been kissed. Not like this. Pressed firmly into the stone of an ally wall, hands grasping her rear to haul her off the ground, the force behind those lips steals the air from her lunges. The passion, the desire, the lust – she can feel it boiling relentlessly under his skin. She can feel it as he traps her hands above her head, mouth dropping to sink his teeth painfully into the tender flesh of her throat while his free hand rests on her hip.

"I fucking _hate_ you for this." He snarls in her face, violet eyes a raging storm of unbridled heat under the silver of his hair.

Pressing against her, he bites into her a second time. A low moan slips from him, his grip tightening possessively on her. Her mind leaps ahead, trying to find a way out of this. This, this isn't what she was aiming for. She wasn't meaning to get under his skin, to leave such an opening for him to jump at with animalistic need. Her sight nearly goes black when he grinds his hip into hers, his body broadcasting the stress surging within him.

_Fuck, he's going to rape me. _She forces an image to her mind, focusing to get a clear grip on her own power. And he bites, the scent of blood startling her. Breaking the image in her head.

"Don't even _think_ about it." He rasps against her, growling as he reclaims her mouth for his own.

He rips them from that wall, slamming her into the back wall so that his back faces the alleys entrance. Biting, drawing blood with teeth and lapping at it like some dog, she grasps his shoulders in shaking hands. Mewing at one rough bite, she arches.

"See what you _do_ to me, you little bitch. _I'm a sinner_!" she grasps that little space, hurling him back with her mind alone.

Hitting the ground, one hand resting on her throat as she stares at him with wide-eyes, she scrambles to her feet. He rolls his shoulders, the predator gleam yet to leave his eyes.

_And this is when I should run. _She goes for the side, but he blocks her before she can even move a few feet. One hand catching her throat, bearing her into the wall once more, she finds herself pressed into the wall with his body holding her in place.

Again she hurls him away as his teeth start to bit into her shoulder, but she doesn't stop there. She hits him with another physic blast, hurling him out of the alley as she vaults up into the air. Feet landing on the roof, her fight-or-flight instincts scream _'Run the FUCK away!' _and she's more than happy to listen just this once.

_Run, Raven, run! Run far, far away!_ Breath rattling in her chest, she launches herself through the once again. Sailing through the air, she can feel his chakra spike as he darts after her.

No longer concerned with remaining hidden, he follows close behind. She can feel several other chakra signatures, each belonging to various members of the Akatsuki.

_Damn it! _A sexually frustrated Hidan is bad as is. Having intrigued members of the other members, all who are trying to capture her, joining the game is the last thing she wants. No, if anything, she'd rather vanish. And maybe hide under some rock in another country, or universe, and hope they never find her because what just transpired scared the ever living _shit_ out of her.

It isn't long before the Uchiha's energy flashes at her side, a moment warning for her to dunk and twist. Her foot flashes up, catching him in the chin as he passes over her. Grasping his wrist, she hurls herself around to throw him at his blue-skinned partner. He doesn't catch him, much to her amusement.

Black threads whip through the air moments later, but she blasts them away with ease. She hears Hidan yell at Kakuzu, claiming dibs. A scowl etches its way onto her face, her eyes narrowing. Who is he to claim rights? Kakuzu has just as much claim, since they're partners. And Kakuzu's expression says just as much.

Hidan bounds over his partner, whirling in a dance-like movement as one of her attacks cut through the air. It passes him by. That alone is enough to force her to lose her footing. To stumble as the sheer impossibility that he read her attack, and dodged it.

_It isn't possible._ His grin spreads.

She leaps through the air, the ground zipping past in a vast array of browns and reds. He follows, his shadow falling on her as he passes over her. And grabs her wrist, twisting it behind her back as they slam onto the roof of another building, and forces her back against his chest. His other arm grasps her hip, his nails cutting into her. A whine escapes unbidden, eyes watering from the pain of her shoulder threatening to come out of place.

The other three land, all standing in front of her as other ninja start to appear. Hidan only applies pressure as she moves, warning her without words. Kisame looks downright incredulous as he stares at them, stares at the collected male holding her under his control. Even Kakuzu holds an air of surprise to him, matching the slightly narrowed eyes of Itachi.

"Someone gonna take fucking care of the Kazekage's men?" Hidan drawls out, his breath stirring her hair as his grip tightens as she tries to focus.

_How? How can he be so aware of me? He's the stupid one!_ Her bangs cover her eyes as Kisame and Kakuzu takes off, slamming into the men as Itachi and Hidan sandwich her. Hidan speaks first.

"You're going to listen, understand?"

She nods.

"You are not going to blast us through fucking walls."

Another nod.

"And you will do as you are told the first damn time."

She snaps her head back, smashing their skulls together.

Twisting, she shoves him over the edge before using her energy to increase her speed. She can hear Hidan's curses, the roar of rage slamming into her with enough force to nearly break her carefully crafted concentration. Instead she keeps in mind why she's running from him. Why she wants nothing more than to stay out of his hands. Why she's so intent on getting away. She knows if he gets his hands on her, it might happen again. And she'll be as good as helpless to stop him.

So she flees. She leaps from building to building, easily weaving her way through the village as two of the Akatsuki pursue her. Hidan's deadly intent sears the back of her mind, refusing to budge even as she tries to push it away. Their minds, locked together.

And she can't, for the sake of her own life, understand how the link was formed in the first place.

**OoOoOoOoO**

His mind whirls. Power churns inside him.

He feels alive.

More than that – divine.

He can understand his leader's drive now that he has a taste of it himself. The moment he crushed his lips to hers, it roared to life. Something went from her into him. Curled inside him, and he grabbed onto it. Still holds onto it, letting his body move.

And, somehow, he finds himself matching her movements. Twisting out of the way of her attacks, his speed increasing as he hunts her like a beast, a demon, he has never crossed. Follows in her shadow as she frantically flees from him.

_Jashin-sama, now I understand. Guide my hand, my god. Guide this servant as he hunts. _He's a sinner, a man who has taken his first taste of sexuality. And it has consumed him, drowned him in the feeling of a raven-haired female whose more than a mystery to him.

An obsession.

Itachi falls into step next to him, "Hidan,"

The Uchiha pauses, much to the priest's surprise. He says nothing, waiting. He doesn't have to wait long until Itachi comments, "Can you get hold of her if I cut her off?"

Hidan casts a quick glance, nodding.

_Oh yes, Itachi-san. I can get her. She doesn't stand a fucking chance. _Adrenaline pumping through his blood, he drops. The building blurs as he falls along the side, eyes closing as he concentrates on her presence. He can feel her, sense her in his every moment.

_Intoxicating._ He can hear the sounds of battle as Itachi cuts into her way. He waits, allowing his senses to take over. Then he shoots up, slamming into her side. Wrapping around her like a snake in human flesh, much to his disgust as Orochimaru jumps to mind, he cages her against him. Both on their knees, his arms wrapped tightly around her, he holds her close.

Holds her closer than he's ever held anyone, or been held.

But then her energy spikes.

Pulses.

Fluxes.

And she shatters, vanishing in a cloud of glittering shards.


	17. July 14, 2011

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: A new chapter is up! It looks like I might be getting back into grove. Hopefully I'll be able to update more often. And on a regular basis, but we'll see as we go along. However, this chapter is a bit unusual - and you'll see as you read. I'd really like to get everyone's thoughts about what's happening. It might be a bit confusing, so take your time with reading. Read and enjoy!

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Seventeen**

* * *

Panic –

Pain –

Fear. She's encased in darkness, the world a mixture of white and black. Grays fade, blurring the lines as she drifts in limbo. Her heart, it still pounds a frantic beat in her chest. Her eyes, they're watering. She can feel the tears dripping down her check as she floats in the confusing net of oblivion. But she can't rid the burning marks in her skin from where Hidan's fingers dug in. But something is happening – her surroundings are becoming more familiar.

And then her feet touch the ground.

The surroundings are familiar. Almost like stepping into a dream, a world that she never knew existed. Or thought possible. But she's standing there, in a room that's a mixture between black and white and gray. And an impossibly red splash holds her attention, a stain that's on the floor.

Stepping towards it, she pauses as her skin chills. Looking down, she notices that her legs are bare and that she's wearing a loose white shirt. A shirt that is, more or less, stained red around the chest area. Holding up her hand, staring at blood-red fingers, her brows furrow in confusion.

_Noise – there's noise. Static, like a waterfall. She slips out of bed, noting the time. The gun, it's under the bed. Mother pup it there. She said it was for emergencies. But the noise, it pulls her out of her room and into the hall. Towards the front room, there are voices._

_Talking, they're talking._

Shaking her head, she pulls away from the redness in the room. Pulls away from the only color that she can see, stepping into a hallway with tentative steps as confusion curls in her stomach. Confusion in her mind, black and doubt inspiring, eats away at her.

The kitchen, that's where she is, she's in someone's house. It's the only answer that makes sense. But how did she get here? She was running from the Akatsuki, and then…

Then…

Then…

Then Hidan caught her. He was holding onto her, forced her to her knees with untold ease. And he restrained her in that position as her heart pounded away in her chest. In those moments, all she could see was a house in the back of her mind. Feel it breathing its own life as pieces of furniture became one with the building.

And, as she looks around, she can see that's where she's at.

"What the hell?" she pauses at the counter, runs her hands over the smooth tiles. Opening the cupboards, she runs her fingers over the boxes within. Cereals, food of all kinds, sit patiently in front of her eyes.

The next room – a long hallway waits in front of her. She drags her hands along the walls, letting the chill seep into her bared legs. The thin cloth, a button-down shirt, is closed by three buttons and the draft slips through to caress her skin.

She fades through the house, her feet carrying her upstairs to a room. A bedroom, all black and white with blurred areas of gray. Pictures are on the walls – flowers, buildings, people. Rugs adore the floor, drapes block the windows.

_This is…my room._ The realization of that numbs her, turns her blood cold in her veins as a small part of her whispers to return back to the colors. It begs to get away from this cold house, the difference startling to her senses. But she crosses the room to the bed, stares down at it.

And then sits, sinks into it.

"Why can't I remember?" Raven asks herself as her mind turns to the clear memories. Her powers, her fighting the Akatsuki who had an absurd interest in her.

And she closes her eyes, silences the roaring chaos of her mind. She pulls an image up in her mind, the room itself but in color. And when she opens her eyes, it looks the same – gray, white, and black.

Drawing her knees up to her chest, she rests her forehead against the curved bone. Trembling, she lets her eyes close. She ignores the static, listens to the room groan and cry as the static increases to the point that she feels she can't breathe.

_This isn't home. Home wasn't…cold. Not like this. _Footsteps echo downstairs, voices murmur in confusion. She lifts her head only when her door opens, her gaze going up to stare a certain silver-haired priest in the eyes.

"Where the fuck are we?"

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

He had caught her. _Caught her_. Itachi can still see it in his mind, the two on their knees on the roof with the girl encased in the man's arms. Like that, she looked small. Not weak, not strong, but like a girl should look. One that isn't a ninja – she looked like a lost child, eyes wide as she struggled in her panicked state.

And then she vanished.

Shattered, if he's going to be honest – exploded in many colors only to have that energy unfold around the area she had been. He saw Hidan vanish seconds afterwards, his face frozen in shock as it engulfed him.

Kakuzu, who had arrived with Kisame, froze in midair. Stopped, as if someone was playing a film and hit pause. Even Itachi, who was in the middle of an attack of his own, became stuck in the stillness that was eerily quiet.

His connection with the others, a link shared between them on rings, sparked for a moment. He could feel shock radiating through the connection, anger and a sense of familiarity. It isn't something he can easily describe, but it sent a thread of fear through them all.

And now he's standing in a street, staring up at a gray and white sky. The sun, it's blinding compared to the colors around it. So white, it looks like a fresh piece of paper that reflects the light hits it into your eyes. A pain his sensitive eyes do not like.

But, as he looks around, the world is still. Empty.

All the yards are gray, the fences black. Houses are a mixture of shades of the three colors he sees in this place. It's as if the life was drained of this place. A place he can create with his Sharingan, but different. This isn't a genjutsu. He can't dispel it, even as he makes the hand signs to do so.

"Itachi-san!" he turns, sees Kisame and Deidara making their way to him.

And, thankfully, they're not black and white and gray. Their cloaks are different, all gray without a design on it. And, seeing the expression on the bomber's face, he can see that they're just as uneasy as he is. Deidara's unsettled in this place, this world.

Kisame looks oddly at ease. "It feels like we've been here before."

Itachi inclines his head in agreement to his partner's words. Deidara folds his arms inside of his cloak, his brows furrowing as he casts a nervous look around them. He goes farther, commenting, "This place feels death, eh?"

"Agreed." Kisame and Itachi intone, their voices low.

"We should see if we can find the others." Kisame suggests, his gaze sweeping over their surroundings with furrowed brows.

Silently, they make their way down the street. All three of them stay silent, but walk with their sides brushing. It's the only sensation that tells them this isn't some kind horrid dream or a creepy nightmare.

Slowly, house by house, they inspect their surroundings. They find no people, no animals, and there's no sound. There are no birds singing, there's no hum of music.

It's as if they have stepped into a world composed of empty buildings. A ghost town, in a way, but they do find articles that belong to people. Clothing, food, water, boxes with static coming out of them. It's as if everyone got up and left.

And, once again, they step out into the street. Ahead of them, Sasori steps out of a house.

And Deidara pauses, his head cocking to the side as he shimmers out of sight. The three look at each other, brows rising. "That was unexpected."

"Where'd Danna go, hmm?" Deidara moves to where the Puppet Master was, wordlessly walking a circle around the area that he stood seconds ago.

Sasori was there, but no longer.

And as Deidara turns, he trembles.

He's alone.

No Itachi.

No Kisame.

Nothing.


	18. July 31, 2011

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: I'm sure you all have noticed that this chapter is a good deal longer than the last. And it's a bit slow, not much happens in it. But hopefully you all enjoy - and we can say that Raven, for the first time in a long while, isn't all bad-ass. More...normal. I think.

Please review and tell me what you think!

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Eighteen  
**

* * *

Raven's never been so unsettled in her life.

Her encounter with Hidan had been scary, and, frankly, she'd prefer to go back to than keep walking in the place she's at. But she doesn't know where she's at. It's silent, there's no heat or cold, and there isn't even a wind. No noise, no wildlife. It's more than unsettling. It's more than unnatural or surreal. It's…harrowing. It makes her skin crawl, her body trembles.

And with each step, she can feel eyes on her.

Boring into her.

Seeing through her.

_Laughing_ at her.

Even now, she eases into another house. Her fighting clothes are gone. She couldn't find them when she landed in her home. She's sure it's her home. A nagging part of her mind tells her that over and over, a mantra that refuses to go away.

And she couldn't find any pants either. But who's to see her wondering around in a blood stained shirt and her underwear? And she doesn't even bother finishing the buttons on the shirt, leaving the two towards the center as they are. It keeps the button-down shirt closed, that's all that matters.

And now she's wandering through a front room. Picking up various objects, pulling items off shelves, it almost looks like everyone in the house left in a hurry. Just left everything behind. But, as time goes on, she starts noticing other details. Small details – a yellow hue to a flower, a dark brown tint to the wood, a reflection in a mirror. Even the soft tick of a clock caught her ear once, in one of the other houses. But there are no answers.

There's…nothing.

But she has a feeling that all the Akatsuki are here.

A gut feeling, really. It's almost like this has happened once before, but she just can't recall when or if it was a dream. But surly she can't be dreaming now. She's sure she's awake. But if she's asleep, it would explain the sudden change in her clothing.

She continues, moving house to house. Soon she's walking down the street. And the ground, it feels damp under her feet. It forces her attention to the asphalt, her brows furrowing as she sees a stream of water moving along carelessly. She steps to the side, watching the ripples from the disturbance she caused by raising her foot. But it settles back into calm, unaffected here but the change carried down beyond her sight.

She wouldn't have known someone was behind her if they didn't clear their throat. But they did, and she turns to see who it is. Her eyes widen slightly, surprised to see the red-haired Sasori standing there with a light frown on his face. And the way his gaze travels over her, from head to toe, doesn't drop under her notice. If anything, it jumpstarts a self-conscious gesture of bringing her arms close together in front of her chest, her thighs pressing together as she glances awkwardly away from him.

And, for a brief moment, she wonders if he even knows who she is. Has she ever introduced herself in her run-ins with the Akatsuki? Has she ever stopped, just for a moment, to give them a name so they would have something to call her by other than 'girl', 'woman', or 'bitch'? And, now that she thinks on it, she can't say she has.

So she gives him her name before he speaks, nodding a faint greeting before looking around them. He merely sighs, looking down the road. But he doesn't speak. And she figures he has no need to.

He's as much at a loss as she is.

But he does say one thing many minutes later. A question. "Where are we?"

And she doesn't have an answer. She tells him this.

He casts a look at her, face unreadable, but doesn't comment. Instead, he starts walking up the street and pauses when she doesn't follow. After that, casting one look down the street, she falls in step behind him.

"Do you know nothing of this place?" he finally asks a bit later.

"Nothing other than that it's a…replica of my hometown. And that something's very wrong with it." She answers truthfully, uncertain about what's going on as flickers of color pop up here and pop up there. He only gives a grunt of agreement, pausing in front of a glass window looking into a store.

"Wrong is an understatement." Both look up, seeing the Akatsuki leader stalking towards him. He pauses, staring at her, then looks at Sasori. "Have you found any of the others?"

"Once. But…I was transported to another part of the town, it seems. I haven't been able to find Itachi, Kisame, or Deidara since." He answers swiftly, turning back to her to ask, "Did you run into anyone once you came?"

Hidan and Kakuzu. She can still recall the confused stare that he had given her before they vanished before her very eyes. And now, as she had suspected, they are all stuck in this odd world. And it seems that they appear, disappear, and reappear. But why?

Raven gives a start when a hand lands on her shoulder, looking meekly up into Pein's face. He seems confused, giving her a look similar to what Sasori had given her before they started walking. But she can't see why they're staring at her so oddly.

Except maybe that she's changed, somehow. But she's powerless here, unable to command things at a whim. And, likely, they are unable to use their chakra. But they're trained ninjas, strong and capable of killing with their hands alone. And that seems to click in the Akatsuki leader's mind for he sends one look to Sasori. Who nods.

Soon the world around them starts to change.

The ground stays black, but the lines in the center turn white. Trees turn brown and green. The sky turns a dark blue-black of nighttime. But it all stays cast in shadow, in darkness, and all colors are darker than what they should be. Yet there is something else here now.

She can feel it in her blood.

In her bones.

The eyes, they're watching them. Red orbs staring out from the deepest shadows, a shrill sound almost too low to hear taking over the area. And Raven knows that they're targets, prey, to something much more sinister than any of them can truly understand.

Pein's already pulling out kunai, Sasori flipping out a thin katana that was hidden somewhere in his cloak. Both more back-to-back, putting her between them. But the hissing doesn't stop, the volume grows. Soon her ears are ringing, her eyes swelling with tears as she doubles over with her hands buried in her hair.

_Remember…_

_Remember…_

_Remember…_

It swirls in her head, the voices clashing in a whirlpool of sounds. Outside of her hearing, a battle takes place. Other voices are crying out, weapons hissing through the air. And then warmth, a cloak falling over her shoulders and an arm pulling her firmly into a warm chest.

_Remember…_

_Remember…_

_Remember…_

Nails bite into a hard chest, biting into the flesh. A heart beats under her palm, a clang of metal right behind her. She blinks her eyes, trying to see through the waterfall of tears. Looks up, sees a man with dark hair and focused red eyes.

Itachi.

Her gaze flickers around the area. Sees Hidan, and Kakuzu, fighting their way closer as she stands in the protective circle of the Uchiha's arms. At Itachi's side is Kisame and Sasori, both standing with their jaws set and their eyes hard.

Even Pein stands with them, blocking and knocking away flashing orbs of black and gray that is shrieking loudly enough to cause them all discomfort. But Itachi keeps one arm closed around her, holding his cloak to her as his own sword stops the fast moving creatures in their place.

_Remember…_

_Remember…_

_Remember…_

Her skull pounds as the chant becomes unbearable. Stars burst behind her eyes, she sags into her protector's chest. And then she can hear Hidan demanding answers, threatening to disembowel Itachi if he hurt her. And she's certain that he's getting odd looks.

"What the fuck are you staring at!"

Yep – he's getting strange looks.

And then others are there. They're all there. Zetsu, propping the side of her throat for a pulse as she falls limp in Itachi's arm – searching for life. She can hear Pein ordering them back, out of the open. She can hear Konan yelling that they're being surrounded. She can hear Tobi swear followed by a grunt of pain. And then they're moving.

Somehow they end up in her home. And she's being set on her couch, a hand resting against her chest to test the rise and fall of her breath. But the hand's cold against her chest, a hand that moved under her shirt.

"Remember what?" she asks herself, blinking up at the ceiling.

What is it that she's supposed to remember?

It doesn't make sense!

But then it does. She recalls how she first met Hidan and Kakuzu in the forest, her as frightened as a deer. And injured, wearing a white shirt covered in blood. She remembers them killing some people wearing strange clothing, their rage as she beat them with a tree.

She remembers the farm, the children, and the villages that came after. She remembers meeting the Akatsuki after…after…after what? They all had been in this house, somehow. But wasn't that a dream deprived from a sick imagination for a way to know them all? But now they're there, all in flesh and blood. And they're all staring at her like she's grown a second head.

But what happened before she met Hidan?

What had she been doing?

Where had she been?

How did she get that wound?

And ever so slowly, it falls into place. The static, the men, the rain and the bridge. The attic, the scroll and picture. She can even recall her mom talking to her on the phone, telling her to behave herself while she was away. Telling her to keep the house clean and eat plenty of greens.

And to remember to call her grandfather regularly so he doesn't worry.

Now she sits up, frowning as everything slams into her mind with the force of a freight train behind it. It collides with her thoughts, breaking it all apart as she stares at the men, and one lady, gathered around her. And the new personality lurks under the skin, turning her fragile will into one of iron.

Her gaze hardens, looking over them all as she says, "What the hell were those things?"

"We thought you'd know." Kisame answers with a large grin, casting one look out her window. But Raven shakes her head, "Nope. They've never been in my hometown before. Not a creature I know of, either."

Another silence falls over them before Hidan blurts, "What the fuck are you supposed to remember?"

She stares at him, alarmed by how close he's standing. Or, in this case, crouching. They're nose-to-nose. And he still doesn't know the term 'personal space' it seems. That or he just doesn't care. She would bet on the second – With her life.

But the only thing she can think of is how close he is. And the fact that the last time he was in her personal space, he was kissing her like she was the cure to his disease. The mental one, since a physical one would be the fact he doesn't die. And that's more a blessing than a curse when you're an assassin.

And she finally feels his hands on the top of her thighs, his skin warm. She glances down at them, a thoughtful look crossing her face as she looks at the others. And, sure enough, they're all staring at him like he's crazy. Of course he's ignoring them. Naturally, to her growing disdain, he's staring at her like she's some exotic painting he's never seen before.

"Mind moving your hand?" she asks pleasantly. She even smiles.

Now he's looking down at his hand, staring at it like it's an insect before grinning. His hand glides down, pausing on her knee. She squeaks, jerking when he applies a slight pressure to the cap and tries to pull away. He snickers, repeats the action. And this time she yelps, slamming her hand against his face to push him away.

He swats it away, Deidara's laugh ringing out a moment later as Hidan tickles her mercilessly. Why he's acting this way, she can't even guess. But it's torture in its own way and she can't get away from him. Or his other hand that has sneaked up to her hip.

_If he tries something, I'll kick him so hard that he'll be shitting piss for the next few years! _Again he applies pressure, forcing her up and knocking him over with such speed that he doesn't move for a few moments. Than he's up on his elbows, staring at her like she's as odd to him as he is to her.

Which is probably true.

"I don't know _who_ you are, but you're not Hidan!" she yells, pointing at him as Deidara, behind her, full out laughs. She throws a glare over her shoulder at him, and he grins in return.

"Hidan-san, you're rather friendly." Zetsu comments, which Raven roars, "That fucker kissed me!"

"Don't forget, I also trapped you to a damn wall. And I'm not a fucker, you little bitch." He snaps, standing. But the grin has yet to leave his face.

"A man who has a phobia to sex and anything sexual kissed a woman?" Kisame questions his partner, motioning to the two before them. Kakuzu only grunts, "At least he didn't have sex with her."

A silence goes over the room before Konan asks, rather quietly, "You didn't, right?"

"What the hell do I look like? _A fucking whore_!"


	19. September 19, 2011

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is owned by its rightful writers. I am not any of them. I only own the characters I create during the story.

**Note to readers**: Well, I am sad to say this - this is the last chapter. It's short, but it has meaning. My stories are starting to dwindle, few are left to complete. For all those who have stuck with me till the end (despite the fact that I have had these absurdly long absences between chapters) I will forever hold your encouragement in my heart.

**Rating: T**

* * *

**When Fantasy and Reality Collide**

**Nineteen  
**

* * *

"All of you, shut up!" Pein roars, his attention narrowing on Hidan who has, once again, caged Raven against his chest. Standing in the circle of his arms, looking rather blank-faced and opting to ignore him completely, she looks at the leader.

"Can you get you mentally stupid dog off me?"

She yelps when Hidan yanks her closer, one hand smacking her rear hard. The stinging pain is instant, her eyes watering as she glares at him. "That's uncalled for!"

"When did Hidan turn into a pervert?" Deidara's question drifts through the air, followed by Kisame's response, "After he kissed her, I'd bet. He's been deprived of the wonders of a woman's flesh. Naturally he'd become addicted."

"How the hell would you know that, hmm? You're blue."

"At least I don't blow up the girls I bed. That way I have someone I can return to instead of having to scout them out every time I need to get laid." The ex-mist ninja shoots back.

"Okay, will you guys _please_ stop talking about sex? We have better things to discuss." Raven interjects with murmurs of agreement.

They settle into an uneasy silence, but she can feel some of their gazes boring into her. She knows it's because of her clothing. Or, for a better choice of words, lack of clothing. The only one who isn't staring would be Konan, and that's because she, too, is a girl. If she was staring, Raven would have some serious problems. And some major ass-kicking to deliver.

"Okay, how about I go find a change of clothes and we can all sit down and figure this out?" she suggests, but Hidan snorts. "Or we can just skip the first part and fucking talk now."

"I'm in my underwear, you asshole."

"Point being?"

"I'm in my underwear?"

Hidan's mouth opens, ready to snap out an answer but relents when the leader narrows a glare on him. She escapes upstairs, tugging out a pair of pants and donning them as quickly as possible. She's downstairs once again as the Akatsuki settled into the couches.

Pein is already talking, going over possible ideas for what is holding them there, but Itachi rebuffs that by easily with a casual, "I believe the problem resides in Raven-san."

She frowns, not quite understanding what he means.

"This is, as she pointed out, a mirror to her own home. Something brought us all here. We just need to figure out what." Sasori offers, leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees.

The others begin to toss in their ideas – one being thought over while the other is tossed aside without discussion. Raven's attention jumps between them, not quite keeping up with the turn the conversation is beginning to take. Yet she leans back, a calm creeping over her as she watches them argue. Irritation boils underneath.

"Not sure if you've noticed, yet, but this isn't getting us anywhere." She finally snaps.

They all turn to look at her, their eyes narrowing as Pein questions, "That what do you suggest?"

Raven shrugs. "It doesn't matter what I suggest. You'll do what you want regardless."

They glance between each other. Konan finally puts in, "Maybe the reason is right in front of us, but we're refusing to acknowledge it."

All attention turns to the second girl in the room.

"Raven-san first appeared, saw by Kakuzu and Hidan. Later the rest of us, in one way or another, learned of her. Kakuzu, how has she changed?"

The stitched one frowns, a thoughtful look crossing his face as he answers, "She has become more independent. She depends on her own ability. She ran when she first came across us. And several times afterward."

Now that Raven thinks on it, she did run a lot before taking her place in the ninja race. She found strength in herself that she didn't know was there. A feral bloodthirsty desire to survive exists in all human beings, an instinct to survive. Yet she lost the part of her that came before. The girl she was raised to be was replaced.

And as she meets Konan's eyes, she can see this woman has the same thing in her mind.

Raven finds a peace within herself as color creeps into the room, the humming sound in the back of her mind turning into static. All the Akatsuki have a disturbed, and surprised, look on their faces. It takes her a moment to realize the best things should never be forgotten.

When fantasy and reality collide, only the truth remains.


End file.
